The Crossover Theory
by Herena Sarafren Elmrhyssa
Summary: Ch 14,15,16 up. Bio-Counter is under attack. S.T.A.R.S, separated and trapped in the impermeable compound have little hope left of survival. The only ways out are blocked and it seems that someone within the compound wants them worse than dead. pls R+R
1. Prologue

Prologue

The dense forest that surrounded it very well concealed the mansion hidden in the mountains. But no matter how many trees they screened the building with, even with the seemingly normal private mansion cover; the real secrets of the house would have to come to light eventually. For no one, no matter how secretive they may be, no matter to what lengths they may go can ever conceal the truth from those who want to find it. And as always, the irony of it all, is that the biggest secrets, and that they may break with the most ferocity, would always be the quickest to be uncovered...

"Warrick. Bring that over here, would you? There's a good lad." 

Warrick Scirhearn was an apprentice under a scientist named Henry Sarton. He had only been here in the secret lab for a week, and already everyone seemed to expect him to know what they were thinking. A budding genetic scientist, Warrick had taken up the deal with the company as soon as it was offered to him. He had practically signed the contract in blood, so strict were the clauses, but he was glad that he had. Working on the large-scale experiments that were being conducted by the company here was a thrill. There was so much to learn that he never thought he would ever know. Textbooks couldn't teach the science he was learning here. Henry stood back from the cage and shook his head.

"No. That won't do. Perhaps we need to raise the exposure." He carefully removed the small cat from the cage and handed it to Warrick. "Here. Take this animal back to the keeping room, would you? Be careful not to let it scratch you, the last thing we need is for an accident here."

Warrick nodded and held the cat. It was a gorgeous black and white kitten. The blue tag on its ear read T-092. He took it into the back room and placed it in its cage. He returned to the lab.

"Dr Sarton, is Smokey going to be used in the 'T-000' experiment?"

"Why do you ask, Warrick?"

He shrugged. "Her tag says T-092. I was curious to know, seeing as the only creatures bearing that code are T-Grade Bio-Organics, which, if I'm not mistaken, are the main B.O.W.s."

Henry laughed. "Very observant, Warrick. Yes, Smokey was intended for that experiment. But the way things are going at the moment; I think she may be a failure. The virus doesn't seem to be affecting her at all."

Warrick nodded as Henry picked up the empty vial and sealed it into a contamination bag. Warrick looked around at the small laboratory he was all too familiar with. Once or twice he had thought that perhaps what was going on here was wrong, but after considering what could become of it, he had managed to convince himself otherwise. But some of the creatures, especially the mammalian specimens, really frightened him. Particularly the green monsters that were held in the B4 holding rooms. Though he hadn't really seen them very often, when he had been shown the creatures, they had really frightened him. Henry looked at him.

"You can go now Warrick, could I trouble you to feed the Cerberus'? I don't exactly have the time right now."

"Yes sir."

He smiled and turned back to what he was doing. Warrick left the room, and shuddered. He didn't like the dogs. But there was something he disliked more. One of the consultative researchers who occasionally came in from Raccoon City. He didn't know his name, but he knew him well enough to stay away. The scientist in question was standing close by in the hall, talking to one of the other researchers, a young man whom he only knew as Dr Fidler. Warrick turned quickly and put his head down, walking quickly down the hall. Just as he came to the stairs, someone darted out in front of him and cut him off.

"Whoa, son! Where're you off to in such a hurry?" Warrick looked up. Dr Fidler grinned. "Can I get you to give me a hand, kid? Warrick, wasn't it? I'm Dr Fidler. Richard Fidler."

He nodded. "Yes sir. Nice to meet you."

"You to. Well kiddo, I was wondering if you're in any particular hurry, 'cause I need someone to give me a quick hand down on B4."

Warrick shuddered and looked past him, up the stairs, wishing that there was some way to get away from the task that was about to be set for him.

"I....I was just about to feed the dogs...." he said shakily, and looked up the stairs. Dr Fidler waved it away. 

"Aww, they've been alright all day, I'm sure they can wait another half hour or less. Come on, thanks Warrick, there's a good lad."

Warrick followed him unwillingly down to the elevator to B4. Dr Fidler grinned at him.

"Yeah, I know. The monsters are scary, but they can't get out, you're fine. Is that the problem?"

Warrick shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

"You're a little young to be a scientist, aren't you?"

"I'm an apprentice."

"All the same, how old are you? 17, 18?"

"19."

"Just a little off."

The elevator stopped and Dr Fidler slid open the grated door. He led him into a room at the end of the hall. There were a few other scientists in the room. Dr Fidler approached a tank at one end of the room.

"Now, what I want you to do is this. This is the room we use for holding the T-000 specimens, and I'm sure you know that. Over in the corner is a computer. Can I get you to run up some of the reports on the following specimens?"

Dr Fidler led him to the computer and loaded a slide cartridge into the high-tech printer next to the PC.

"Okay, I want you to bring up the Cerberus, Neptune, Hunter, Tyrant and copy the pictures from the file on the B.O.W. progress. And when you're finished, just put it up in the Visual Data Room and you can be on your way. Thanks for your co-operation, Warrick, I appreciate it."

Warrick nodded and set to it.   
  


Warrick, Henry and Richard all turned in surprise as the alarm sounded out through the lab. Hitting the switch on the projector, Henry bolted from the room to see what all the ruckus was. Richard ran to the door and looked out. Three scientists ran up the stairs from B3.

"Hey! Hey you! What happened down there?"

They looked at him. "Dr Fidler! Come with us! There was an accident in the lab, we have to evacuate the laboratory until clean up arrives and secures the area. Until then, anyone who comes after us will be sealed in the lab."

Richard nodded and ducked back inside. "Come on, kiddo, there's been an accident. Let's go. Before we get locked in."

Warrick followed closely as they were led from the lab. As soon as they left, two of the scientists took the medals from their respective alcoves in the side of the outer rim of the shaft that led to the underground lab. The third held open two books, a blue one and a red one. The two medals were placed in the red and blue books separately. He handed them back to the men.

"Put Doom Book 1 somewhere in the mansion. Put the other one in the Underground. Make sure they're hard to access."

Warrick stepped forward. "What? You're just going to lock them down there?"

The head scientist turned to him. "This is no time for you to have a morals issue, boy. This is a Class-B emergency."

Richard looked at them with a hard expression. "What exactly, did happen down there?"

"One of the sealed bulk canisters containing the virus was broken when one of the creatures escaped momentarily."

"Good God! Is it under control?"

He shook his head. "There were casualties associated with the escape of the animal. Some other researchers died immediately when they came in contact with the virus material."

"Dr Fidler, what's going to happen?" Warrick asked shakily. Richard shook his head.

"I'm head scientist for this particular experiment, so listen up you three and do exactly as I tell you. The lab emergency protocol is in action as of now. We have to fully seal the laboratory, and suspend all other experiments currently being conducted with the material in question. Put everyone on alert. There's a possibility that some of the other animals may have escaped. 

"Issue these orders to all security personnel; shoot all intruders on sight. Anyone who tries to escape the mansion, shoot them also. Any animal that is seen outside its pen is to be eliminated. The Helicopter Port is still off limits. Follow the security procedure used in the case of a full-scale intrusion. No one gets in, no one gets out. Have the underground sealed, and the door into the courtyard closed off also. Anyone in the guardhouse is to stay there. 

"Lock doors vital for procedure through the mansion and store the keys at separate intervals and activate the emergency traps. Begin to run tests on all scientists immediately and issue the contamination suits to anyone not infected. Move it!" Richard grabbed Warrick's arm. "Come on. Back to the mansion."

"Okay, take this down. On May the 11th there was an accident resulting in the release of a certain agent being developed by the company in the Arklay Mountain laboratory. This is a record of the events and the actions taken by the staff. 

"The early morning experiments were progressing as planned until the laboratory alarms were sounded. The reason for this alert was discovered upon our exit of the facility. In the basement levels of the laboratory, an accident was caused by the escape of one of the MA-121 specimens being held in the B4 laboratory. This accident resulted in the now imminent outbreak of the contagion known as the T-Virus. A full-scale containment operation was launched to avoid possible spread of the virus. 

"Though the efforts to contain the virus to the laboratory had been successful due to the fact that Tyrant Virus is not an airborne contagion, our efforts had been in vain due to the presence of many experimental specimens, which had escaped during the emergency. They have attacked and killed several of the researchers already. Areas where these creatures have gained access to the mansion were cordoned off in the efforts to contain them. Some of these said areas included the Courtyard, Guardhouse, Underground and the Laboratory. Also, some of the B.O.W.s had escaped. 

"Of these, a few have been traced. The giant snake has been found to be in the attic room, but is somehow gaining access to the library. The spider Black Tiger is in the storage room of the Underground, and has blocked the door through by casting a web across it. Plant 42 is in the main room of the Guardhouse. Tyrant has luckily not escaped. The door to the Helicopter Port has also been welded shut. Therefore all precautions have been taken to prevent any further contamination. 

"Headquarters were contacted and advice on other ways to handle the situation has been requested. As of yet we have received no reply. We do not expect to for a few days. But we have learned of a new threat. As many of the researchers have no full awareness of symptoms unique to the virus, they may spend days locked in their rooms to develop the virus without our knowledge. 

"At this very moment tests are still being conducted to define the number of remaining individuals who have contracted the virus. Already many of these individuals are showing symptoms, or their tests are turning up positive. More than half of the staff have been infected. Therefore our efforts to contain the virus have failed. The only conclusion we can come to now, is that the virus is somehow being spread through a vermin, or has mixed with the water and is being spread by this means. We are suspecting the latter. 

"It is now May 14th. We have also found that some of the test subjects have escaped into the surrounding forest. Due to the quarantine regulations however, we cannot track down the escaped specimens. Another accident that occurred involved the Aqua Ring. A scientist lost his sanity on discovering the outbreak and fractured the tank. The resulting damage included the flooding of the Guardhouse basement and the escape of Neptune Prime. This has been troublesome, seeing as Plant 42 seems to be feeding off the nutrients and viral traces in the water. 

"Other than these observations, we have found that the virus decomposes the human flesh and mind as it progresses. The individual is clinically dead, though still walking. They become zombie-like. When struck down, they undergo a further transformation and become incredibly volatile. We have come to call them 'Crimson Heads'. It is now certain that the mansion laboratory experiments have been successful — the escaped monsters are veritable killing machines with very few effective ways with which they can be dealt. The virus itself is lethal. 

"The ultimate conclusion? For the heads of the company, this disaster will go down as the ultimate proof that this experiment was successful. The ultimate truth? We are doomed. Whether or not I, or any other researcher for that matter, should come away from this alive and unscathed, the world will be doomed at the hands of this virus, or any other enhancement of it."

"Shall I put it down as your final hypothesis, Dr Fidler?"

Richard looked at Warrick. "If you like, I don't think it will matter. It probably will be my final hypothesis. After all, as I said my boy, we ARE doomed."


	2. 1a: A Small Thought

Chapter 1a: A Small Thought

July. And the Raccoon City Police Department has been forced into action by the public outcry. There have been many reports of lost hikers in the Arklay Mountains. Mutilated bodies have been turning up in rivers, and on mountain paths. Though it has been presumed that these are animal attacks, there have been several reports of vicious killings by groups of people. The Marble River district of Raccoon City was shocked by the discovery of a headless woman in the river. She was one of the missing hikers. The public had then had enough and turned to the police saying something must be done. The R.P.D responded by closing off the mountain trail and sending search parties seeking the lost hikers. Amongst these search teams, the elite S.T.A.R.S. unit was to be sent into the mountains. And it was at this point that the captain of the R.P.D. Special Forces Service and the captain of S.T.A.R.S. began to move. The S.F.S. captain, a woman named Danielle Lanza, had agreed to accompany the S.T.A.R.S. Bravo Team into the mountains. She stood on the rooftop of the police station, and reflected on the past few months since she first came to Raccoon City in February....

Raccoon City's small airport was surprisingly busy, mainly with people coming back from their summer vacations. The plane from Denver was now disembarking, and amongst the people rushing to get off the plane, a young woman strolled casually into the terminal from the boarding gate. As she picked up her suitcases from the luggage conveyer, she sighed and looked around. The woman was tall, brunette and beautiful. She walked slowly out of the airport, and onto the street outside. She put her bags down for a moment and hailed a cab. Giving the driver the address, he took her to her new house. She paid the cabbie and he drove off. Flicking her fringe behind her ear, she fiddled with her new keys until she found the right one. Then she unlocked the door and went inside. On the floor on the other side of the door, there was a few letters.

"Air mail, air mail, air mail, Raccoon City Police Department. They don't waste much time," she said, opening the one from the R.P.D. "Lets see....

"'To Miss Danielle Lanza. We're pleased to announce your immediate promotion to captain of the elite Raccoon City Special Forces Service, otherwise known as the S.F.S. We request that you attend a meeting of force superiors on 2/2/98, which is this Monday. We understand that this is short notice however; it is necessary for you to get to know your fellow officers. We look forward to meeting you in person. Yours sincerely, Police Chief Brian Irons.'

"Immediate promotion? From what I've heard, Raccoon City's S.F.S. is full of lazy lard-asses. More like immediate demotion, if they're really like that. I hope they don't expect me to wear uniform, either. Can't stand uniforms.... They're so demeaning."

Danielle looked around and laughed, closing the door. "There I go again, talking to myself like usual. I've really gotta make some new friends. Monday the 2nd? That's tomorrow...." Suddenly the phone rang. Danielle shrugged. "Sometimes I think they've got me bugged. Who on Earth could have my number already?" She picked up the cordless phone. "Ye-llo?"

"Howdy, captain!"

"Oh my God! Richard? Richard Fidler, is that you?"

The person on the other end laughed. "Sure is. Hey. Shellie couldn't call you herself, she's gone out, but I saw you pull up, and thought I'd give you a bell!"

Danielle walked over to the window and looked out at the house across the road. A young man in the window of the other house looked out and waved. Danielle smiled and waved back.

"You're looking good lately, Rich. Shellie hasn't been workin' you too hard, I hope."

"Not a chance. Actually, this is the last time either of you are going to see me for a while, I've got a big project on with the company and, though Shellie doesn't want me to, I'm leaving in a few days, and won't be back for the next few months."

Danielle laughed. "That's a bit rude, isn't it? After all, I just got into town. The least you could do is step outside that fox-hole of yours and say hello in person."

Richard sighed. "Oh, geez. Don't tell me you're bored, you've gotta get unpacking, miss!"

"Why don't you be the gentleman you're always saying you are and come around and help me?"

"That's what removal men are for."

"For your information, Mr Fidler, the removalists have been here already, unpacked one or two things... like the phone, and split."

"Hang up."

"What?"

"Hang up... I'll leave Shellie a note and I'll come and help you. After all," he added with a laugh, "It's the least I can do for my favourite honorary sister."

Danielle Lanza walked boldly into the foyer of the huge police station, and approached the young, blonde secretary behind the desk. The young woman looked up at her as she approached.

"You must be Captain Lanza."

Danielle nodded slowly, and sighed. "Last time I checked...This place is huge. I wouldn't be able to find my way around here if I had a guide. Could you possibly give me directions to the S.T.A.R.S. or S.F.S. office?"

The secretary smiled. "I'd recommend going to see S.T.A.R.S. first, I don't think it would be a good start to your first day if you go straight in and see your unit. They're a bit of an eyesore around here. If you go get acquainted with S.T.A.R.S. first, I'm sure it'll be a better start. Even if Captain Wesker is there. I'm sure that someone there'll help you out after that."

The secretary gave Danielle clear directions to get to the office. Nodding her thanks, Danielle walked off in the direction she had been shown, and started out. In the hallway ahead of her, two men were talking loudly. She paid no attention to them, and kept moving, but somehow became distracted, and walked right into one of them. The other roared with laughter, and the young man she had crashed into with her fast walking pace helped her to retain her balance. She embarrassedly looked up at him and apologised.

"I'm so sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going."

The young man grinned. "No worries. I can tell that you're new here, so don't worry about it. The name's Chris Redfield, S.T.A.R.S."

Danielle smiled, and shook his outstretched hand. "Danielle Lanza, apparently captain of the R.P.D Special Forces Service."

The bushy-bearded man standing next to Chris laughed. "So you're the new captain. I bet the S.F.S. boys are going to be thrilled about that. I'm Barry, by the way, Barry Burton."

Danielle nodded. Chris smiled. 

"It looks like you could use a tour. We'd be glad to show you the way."

"Thanks," Danielle smiled. "I was looking for S.T.A.R.S. and the S.F.S. offices."

Barry nodded. "Not a problem, we'll take you to S.T.A.R.S. first, it's a fair bit more respectful. Come on then."

Danielle laughed. "From what I've heard of the S.F.S, they sound like the south end of a northbound camel."

Chris stifled a laugh. "That's the best analogy of the S.F.S. I've ever heard."

"Here we are," Barry announced as he pushed open the door to the S.T.A.R.S. office. Inside were five people. Danielle recognised one of them instantly.

"Rachelle!"

The young brunette sitting behind a desk in one corner turned around in surprise and sprung up, running over and hugging her. Chris laughed.

"Presumably you two know each other."

"Hell yeah," Rachelle said, leaning on Danielle's shoulder. "Dani and I went to the same academy. When I left and came here, she went over to good 'ole Chicago. Which reminds me. You didn't know I came here to Raccoon, why'd you come here?"

Danielle smiled, and looked around, satisfied that she had the attention of all the S.T.A.R.S. members, including the sinister-looking blonde man at the end of the room.

"Well, after I showed up all the officers in the CPD, I decided to move on, considering that everything you handle in Chicago is drug busts and murders, it does get pretty boring."

"What made you think it was any more exciting here in Raccoon?" a dark-skinned man near the shelves in one end of the office asked, closing the file he held in his hand. Danielle shrugged.

"Umbrella has a laboratory nearby. I found that if I follow Umbrella around, it tends to get pretty exciting. It did in Chicago, anyway."

The blonde shifted uneasily in his chair, and Danielle couldn't help but notice.

"Does that bother you, Mr....."

"Wesker," the man said shortly, standing up. "Albert Wesker. Captain of S.T.A.R.S."

He walked over and shook her hand. Danielle noticed he had a strong grip, and it made her feel awkward, because she couldn't see his eyes behind his shades. She nodded.

"So, presumably you'd be attending today's meeting, Captain Wesker."

Wesker grinned slightly. "Just Wesker will do, thanks, 'Dani'. Great to meet you."

Then he turned and left the room.

"What a sleaze bag," Danielle said.

"Sure is. I think it's a case of hate at first sight, Danielle," A woman behind one of the desks stood up and extended her hand. "Jill Valentine. Don't worry, I won't freeze off your hand like that cold bastard."

Danielle shook her hand with a grin. "Apparently I've been 'promoted' to captain of the S.F.S. Would someone care to take me to see them so that I can measure them up?"

Rachelle laughed. "I'm pretty busy, otherwise I'd come with you just to see their faces when they see that you're the captain. Joseph and Kenneth aren't busy, I volunteer them."

The dark man, and a man wearing a red bandanna, who was standing next to him looked up. Kenneth, the dark man, put the file back on the shelf.

"Come on, Joe. Let's get this over with."

Jill sat down behind her desk. "You're saying it like it's an effort."

"Of course it is," Joseph said, walking up next to Danielle. "Just looking at those sorry excuses for a Special Forces team is an effort."

Danielle laughed. "I plan to do something about that."

"Doing something about it without firing the lot of them will be a hard task, you know."

Danielle shook her head. "I'm sure there are some worthwhile people in there somewhere. I'll just have to weed them out."

Joseph and Kenneth led her out of the room. Jill leaned forward on the desk.

"She reminds me of Hitler."

Rachelle laughed and looked at her. "Why do you say that, Jill?"

She shrugged. "Something about the way she talks about getting the S.F.S. up to shape. It sounds like Hitler's plan to breed a race of blonde-haired blue-eyed people."

Chris shrugged. "I'll follow her if she can actually do it."

"Do what? Breed a race of blonde-haired blue-eyed people?"

"No," he said, shaking his head and laughing. "Weed out the bad members of the S.F.S. with people still there to be the S.F.S. when she's finished."

"Get off your asses, and line up!"

The S.F.S. team looked up from their desks at the voice. Danielle stood in the doorway, her hands on her hips, Kenneth to one side of her, and Joseph to the other. The team sat there for a moment, not knowing how to respond to this order from someone they had never seen before.

"NOW!" Danielle almost screamed at them.

As soon as she had ordered them up, they were moving, lining up messily in front of her. Danielle paced back and forth in front of them and scrutinised every one of them as she passed them. A couple of them stood as if they were stone, without moving a muscle, and others were fairly slack. Eventually Danielle stopped.

"At ease....as if many of you weren't already," she added sardonically. Joseph looked at her uneasily. The kind, laughing, happy young woman who had been standing with them in the S.T.A.R.S. office barely 10 minutes ago had turned brutal, almost like Wesker, except she had flair. The S.F.S. seemed more uneasy than him, though. Danielle stood with her hands behind her back, and stared down each one of them in order, as if she was reading their history with the precinct from their eyes. Then she pointed to a young woman with short, curly blonde hair.

"Name."

The woman stood stock-still and saluted as though Danielle was an army general.

"Zoë Lawrence, Captain," she answered briskly. Danielle smiled. 

"I like you, Zoë. You have discipline. Come up here."

Zoë walked cautiously up to Danielle.

"Zoë Lawrence, I announce you as second in command of Raccoon City's S.F.S. At ease."

Zoë smiled cautiously, as though she wasn't sure whether or not she was allowed to. Danielle turned to the group.

"You know, Zoë, I don't know how to speak the language of the 'lard-ass'. I'm not meaning anything derogatory to you, but you seem to have been here long enough to understand English as well as the language of these heathens. Please humour me and translate what I'm saying to these slackers."

Zoë nodded slowly, not getting where Danielle was coming from.

"I'm your new captain, Danielle Lanza."

Suddenly there was an amount of noise, mainly protests, as it sank in. Danielle looked around with an expression of mocked surprise.

"Oh my! They seem to understand! Shut the hell up!" The room went quiet. "As I said. I am your new captain. And it looks like there's going to be a few changes around here. And anyone who doesn't shape up, is out. Is there anyone in this room who doubts that this will be the case?"

There was no protest. The officers in the room listened in stunned silence.

"Good. I'm off to a meeting, and when I get back, I expect to see you all on some case. Even if you have to reopen a microfilmed case from 1965, I want to see you doing something productive!!! Zoë, please oversee what goes on here for me."

Zoë nodded quietly and turned to the S.F.S. as Danielle walked out with her escorts.

"Alright people, you heard the captain, she wants results, and we're gonna get them for her! Get cracking!"

Danielle grinned as they walked down the hall. Kenneth shook his head.

"They're going to hate you, Captain Lanza."

Danielle shrugged as she put her hand on the handle of the meeting room door.

"They can despise me and curse me to hell if they see it fitting. Your captain isn't there to be loved, a la Wesker. You guys can worship me if you like, but I want the S.F.S. to hate me. Oh and... Danielle's fine, Kenneth."

Joseph shook his head. "You're on the right path. I certainly think that they want you dead."

Danielle smiled. "That's the way I want it."

Danielle looked around at the others in the room. She ended up having to drag Zoë into the meeting, as the second in command was required also. In one corner of the room was Wesker and another S.T.A.R.S. member she hadn't met yet. Chief Brian Irons stood at the podium. It was an interesting meeting room — they were in the room used as a classroom for the trainees and rookies. But no one was complaining.

"You may already know that our 'elite' S.F.S. has a new captain. You also may have had the pleasure of meeting her, I know that I have not, and I am looking forward to our first conversation. What's that, captain?"

Danielle laughed. "I didn't say anything, Chief. Presuming I'm already in the process of bagging you out? I can if you want me to."

Irons laughed. "If you'd like to, you're quite welcome. But please, save it for the office. Right now, if you have anything you'd like to say... Well, I guess you should come and say it now."

Danielle stood up and walked up to Irons. She turned to the assembly.

"Well, I know for certain that I have never laid eyes on some of you before. Straight off that subject now and to the point. As you obviously now know, I am Danielle Lanza. And to put it horribly bluntly, I'm a rabid idealist, and a bitch." There was slight laughter. Danielle smiled and continued. "And I can tell right now that I may not get along with some of you because of this factor.

"Now, onto the subject of the so-called 'elite' Special Force Service that you all seem to take great pleasure in badgering. I agree whole-heartedly, now I have seen them. They are lazy no-gooders, bar a select few I am in the process of singling out.

"One of these worthwhile members is my new second in command, Zoë Lawrence. I've also sighted a couple of others who seem to have discipline."

The other officers turned to each other and there was an amount of whispering. Danielle nodded.

"I'm not here to be quiet, either. Because if I'm not here to make waves, I'm here to make bloody tsunamis. After all, I came from the Chicago Police Department!" They laughed again. Danielle grinned. "And to finish up, I must say, S.T.A.R.S. impresses me very much. Captain Wesker has done a good job."

She looked directly at him before returning to her seat. Irons took the stand again.

"Thank you, captain. Well, what do we think?"

Everyone clapped. Zoë turned to her.

"Did you mean what you said?"

Danielle kept her eyes on Irons, but smiled. "Zoë, something you'll learn very quickly about me, is that I mean everything I say when I say it loud."

"Are you going to lay off the S.F.S.?"

Danielle thought for a moment. "The thought occurred to me the moment I saw them. I might hang onto them for a while. After all, officers like them are a dime a dozen, but I'm sure there's something special in some of them. I just have to find it."

"That's going to take a lot of work."

"Not really. You just find the ones who are working."

Zoë looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, there are some people I noticed right from the beginning. When I gave the order, they were straight into it, without hesitating. These are the people I'm looking for."

Zoë nodded. "I think I understand now."

Danielle smiled. "That's good, Zoë, because only the people who will find themselves out on their asses don't."

The next day, everything was a rush for Danielle. As she ran out the door in the morning, she just couldn't hail a cab. Rachelle crossed the street and walked up to her.

"You right, Dani? Haven't you got a car yet?"

Danielle looked at her tiredly. "Do you think I would? This is my third day here. Of course I don't."

Rachelle laughed. "If you wore your uniform-"

"I will not wear my uniform. I told Irons and I told you. I will not wear a uniform."

Rachelle shrugged. "This, what you wear, you wear the same or similar thing every day. Is that not a uniform?"

Danielle sighed. "It's MY uniform. Patented."

Rachelle looked at her. "By the way, the Chief is a bit of a tight ass, isn't he? How the hell'd you get him to let you come to work like that?"

Danielle shrugged. "I compromised with him. I'm getting the precinct crest embroidered on the jacket."

"Obviously in an inconspicuous place, no doubt."

"You know me too well. However, I want him to stay off my back about it, so I'll be proper about it for once."

"Shock horror." Rachelle looked at the other side of the street as Richard walked out the door. Rachelle tapped Danielle's shoulder. "Hey, I'll give you a ride."

Danielle smiled. "Thanks for the offer Shellie, but I don't see the point."

"Why's that?"

"The station's only a five minute walk anyway."

Rachelle rolled her eyes. "Okay then, you can be the environmentalist 'walk everywhere person who comes to work on a bike'."

Danielle shook her head. "I hate those people. They come in looking all happy and joyful because they've had bran for breakfast. And they come up and say 'Dani needs a hug'. But no. That's wrong. In fact, 'Dani needs a gun'!"

Rachelle laughed. "Oh yeah, that reminds me. You got the Ivory posted over, didn't you?"

Danielle nodded. "I feel lost without the Ivory."

Rachelle nodded and waved, running back across the street to her husband. Danielle smiled at them.

"Hey Rich! Don't you think your marriage is a bad deal?"

He looked up at her from the other side of the road. "Hey? What do you mean?"

Danielle laughed and cupped her hand over her mouth so he could hear her better, even though it would have been no trouble, seeing as the roads were always moderately quiet in Raccoon, especially this part of town.

"Well, Shellie got you... but look what you got!"

Richard laughed. Rachelle flicked her finger up at her.

"I'll get you, Dani!"

"Not in this lifetime," Danielle called back, "Will you ever come up with something good enough to get me back with that I won't have a come back for."

Rachelle grinned. "I bet I will."

Danielle shook her head. "Not even Umbrella could make me lost for words."

Wesker watched Danielle as she leaned over the desk, looking at what Chris was looking over on the computer. Jill was leaning back, looking too. Danielle smiled.

"Hmmm. And this is for....."

"Us, I guess. Hang on, I'll print it up."

Chris hit a key and the printer in the corner started printing copies of the text on the screen.

"Redfield, would you mind clearing that with-"

"Right, right, Wesker... It sorta had 'print me' written all over it."

"Captain Wesker. Redfield, just, from now on."

Chris shrugged. "No worries. Hey Forest, could you pass one of those copies over to the good captain please?"

Forest Speyer, one of the Bravo Team members and a good friend of Chris', had recently returned from a week's leave. Jill looked up as Joseph walked in the door.

"Look who it is. Could you have been any later?"

Joseph shrugged. "At least I'm not like Vickers. Where did he split to, anyway?"

Wesker stood up and took the print out from Forest, reading it over.

"Who knows. I told him to take some time off," he looked at the sheet, and instantly turned to Chris. "Where'd this come from, Redfield?"

"It's from the Chief, Wesker. Looks interesting, huh?"

Wesker shrugged. "This is low priority, can't this go to someone else?" he asked, looking up at Danielle. She put her hands on her hips.

"Hey. I'm not here to take care of the shit you don't wanna pick up, mister. Waste your own time, thanks. If I put anything more on those assholes in the eastern office that call themselves a Special Forces Service, they'll shit themselves."

Wesker looked at her, undaunted. "You've been in charge of them for two days, sport. What could they possibly be doing that is so stressful?"

"Moving, Wesker. That's what."

"They're moving offices?"

"No Wesker. They're moving."

Some of the S.T.A.R.S. members behind her laughed. Jill looked at her.

"I didn't think their legs could cart them to the vending machine in the hall outside their office, rather than on a case."

Danielle turned to her. "Actually, you'd be surprised. I've laid eyes on about six or so officers that actually know how to pull their weight."

Rachelle coughed sarcastically. "Bullshit!"

"Seriously, Captain Lanza."

Danielle rolled her eyes but gave him nothing except a cruel look.

"And she graduated top of her class. Fine. Kenneth, Joseph, Forest, Enrico. You go look into this case for me, would you?"

Enrico Marini, the leader of Bravo Team, stood up and waved his hand, pulling a copy of the printout from the printer and raised an eyebrow.

"You got it."

They left the room. Wesker looked at Danielle and shook his head, returning to his desk.

"You know, the Alpha Team was reassigned here about two, three months ago, and they don't have a lot of trouble with cases, never did."

"You're forgetting something, Wesker," Danielle said, leaning over his desk so that she could talk to his face. "I started here yesterday, and my unit is full of low-lifes and no-lifes, and only a very small fraction of that 25-man unit can actually pull their weight. And most of that small fraction are women. Your Alpha Team was brought in here, plumed and pruned just for the occasion. I was spearheaded to the captain of the S.F.S. on the day I got here without a moment to make a ceremony about it. 

"So don't you go telling me that I can't pull my weight, and that just because my unit is bigger, or my unit doesn't have as many cases, or my unit can't pull their weight like the sister team. Personally, I don't think you'll live to see the day when that lot amounts to something. I'll be surprised if I do. I'll be surprised if THEY do."

"You sure you're not just sour that he tried to get your team to do a brothel bust?"

Danielle resisted the urge to laugh as she turned to Chris. "No, Chris. I didn't wanna take it because I knew that you guys would enjoy it more," she turned back to Wesker. "Tell me one thing, though. What happened to the former captain? What was he like?"

Wesker shook his head. "Un-dynamic. Got the boot by the Chief."

"He was a stereotypical small town lazy-cop. Amounted to nothing," Jill piped up. Chris nodded.

"Fat, slow, didn't care about what the squad did or didn't do."

"Chief Irons could have fired the whole squad if he wanted to, but decided to fire the captain and give them another chance with a new captain," Rachelle said, shrugging. Barry, who had been sitting at his desk listening quietly with his arms crossed and a grin on his face leaned forward on his table.

"I guess he picked you out of the crowd of unhopefulls because of your file from Chicago."

Danielle grinned at him. "Yeah, I bet he did."

Wesker turned away and looked at the photo of the S.T.A.R.S. team hanging on the wall.

"I'm proud of my unit, I don't see why you don't sack them all except for those 'select few' you said could pull their weight."

Danielle nodded and leaned forward more. "I'm going to."


	3. 1b: A Moment's Thought

Chapter 1b: A Moment's Thought

"Hmmm. I wonder why I remember so well."

The tall brunette standing alongside her, Rachelle looked up at the comment.

"Remember what?" she asked her. Danielle pulled the collar of her beige overcoat up around her neck.

"My first few days."

Rachelle nodded. "They were eventful, weren't they. You know, I remember the first time Brad came into the office after you started. Do you?"

Danielle nodded. "He'd been on a short vacation because of stress, or so he said. Personally, I thought he just wanted to get away for a while, I couldn't blame him, the way the guys always treated him. It seemed as if I was the only one who tried to stand up for him. Although, Jill and you didn't approve of it at all, and one or two of the others didn't appreciate it either. The poor guy had such a hard time, it wasn't funny......."

Danielle sat on Jill's desk and yawned. Jill looked up at her.

"Are you bored?"

Danielle shrugged, and nodded. "When Wesker's not around, it gets very boring."

"And quiet," Jill added.

Danielle nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that too."

She glanced up slightly as the door opened slowly, and a young man wearing a S.T.A.R.S. uniform in the style of a yellow vest over a while top and camo pants crept into the room, apparently with the intent of not being noticed. He carried a small suitcase with him. Danielle tapped Jill's shoulder as the young man sat down at a computer in the far end of the room, glancing around to see if he'd been noticed.

"Jill, what's with him?"

Jill looked over. "Well, what'dya know. Brad's back. He went away for a while. About a day before you started."

They all looked up as a very lively looking Rachelle waltzed through the door.

"Hellooo, everybody!" she chimed. Looking around, Brad caught her attention immediately as if he were someone she had never seen before. Walking briskly over, she leaned on the desk and looked down at him. "Hey Brad! The name's Rachelle McDermott. Presumably you've forgotten who I am, because everyone who hasn't knows that you're meant to bow when I enter the room."

Brad's face had a look of pure annoyance on it, and he looked away without even bothering to at least glance at Rachelle. Danielle put her foot in before Rachelle could go any further, walking over and tapping her shoulder.

"Rachelle, leave the poor guy alone. He doesn't look like he wants to be bugged."

Rachelle looked up at her and was about to argue, but stopped. Instead she smiled and walked away. Brad glanced up at Danielle.

"Who are you?" he asked in a hushed voice. He seemed as if he really didn't want any attention to be brought to himself. Danielle smiled.

"Danielle Lanza. What inspired you to endanger your act of solitude and ask?"

Brad stared at her. She kept smiling, and seemed to have not a care as to how he might have interpreted her statement. Then he shrugged. 

"I don't know. I noticed Rachelle, I didn't notice you, and so, I had to know."

Rachelle was standing on the other side of the room with her hands on her hips, giving Danielle a look of pure evil. Suddenly, one of the guys from the other side of the room finally noticed Brad.

"Hey everybody, Chickenheart's back!"

Brad put his head in hands and sighed. "Oh no, not this again."

Danielle felt sorry for him. She had heard about Brad Vickers and how the rest of the guys treated him, just because he had a fear of death, and wasn't too enthusiastic about danger. It wasn't long before most of the guys were either calling his attention by his nickname 'Chickenheart', or trying to get him riled up. Danielle shook her head. Despite her almost need to tell people where to go and to pick fights with superiors, she did have a lot of sympathy. And she could tell that he wasn't enjoying this very much.

"Shut the hell up, you immature dickheads!" she yelled.

That shut them up straight away. Brad stared at her in shock. She had turned from quiet and pleasant, to loud and very dynamic. She grinned.

"Excuse me."

Brad nodded cautiously. "You're excused," he said slowly, with a very surprised tone.

"It's not a matter of the fact that you can't pull your weight, Jason. It's a matter of the fact that you won't pull your weight. There are certain members of this unit who do their jobs well, and you're not one of them. At the moment, you're on the list of people who will be out of the S.F.S. And even then, they'll be lucky to stay in this precinct."

"But you can't do that, captain. Even if you could, you wouldn't!"

Danielle crossed her arms and leaned back on her desk. "Oh yes I can, and yes I will. Don't underestimate me, O'Connor. If I threaten something, I don't bluff. If I say I'll rip your tongue out for lying to me, I will rip your tongue out for that very reason. Would you like me to prove that I will carry out my threats? Or would you like your belongings still on your desk in the morning and not in a cardboard box on the floor?"

Jason looked at the floor submissively. "No captain."

"Can I expect you to start doing your job like you actually deserve one?"

"Yes captain."

"Dismissed, O'Connor."

Jason left her office, not daring to look up at her. When he got out, Elliot Edward and David Ford, both S.F.S. members, greeted him.

"Lanza kicked your ass, didn't she, O'Connor," David poked, laughing. Jason rolled his eyes.

"She'll get hers one day. She is such a bitch."

"Yeah, you're tellin' us," Elliot agreed, nodding. "That's why they put her in charge. She can sniff out talent and knack in a herd of deroes."

David shrugged. "You're only saying that, because she takes it easy on you Edward, just like she does with Zoë and all them. I'll bet you guys won't get fired when she starts ticking off her list that we're all supposedly on."

"I bet Irons doesn't let her fire us, and she gets the boot herself," Jason said, looking in the direction of her office. Elliot shook his head.

"That's not a bet, that's a wish. And it's pretty farfetched, I'd say. Lanza's too much of an idealistic captain. She's got Irons wrapped around her finger. Hell, she's exempt from all the dress code regulations. And the only one, too. I don't see any of us, or any of the S.T.A.R.S. walking around in casual."

Jason shrugged. "I don't care, really. I hope she goes to hell."

"I won't, O'Connor." 

The three of them looked up at Danielle as she stopped in her path in front of them. She leaned down and pressed her finger against Jason's chest. 

"And if I do, I'll meet you there," she hissed. The she kept walking. Elliot called after her.

"You look good today, captain! Your hair looks lovely!"

Danielle didn't turn around. She opened the door and called back at him.

"Kiss someone else's ass, Edward."

Then she walked off down the hall. Brad saw her leave the office from where he was standing out in the hall, and ran after her, catching her just as she reached the door into the lobby.

"Hey, umm......Danielle?"

Danielle turned as he caught up. "Oh, hi. Brad, wasn't it? Did you want something?"

Brad nodded and subtly sized her up. Danielle was about an inch or two shorter than him, about 5'8". She was quite thin-framed, but he could tell by the way that she stood and gestured that she was in no way weak. He guessed that she was probably very fast, and he already knew that she had a sharp tongue. Rachelle had told him that she had a bad side to every good quality, and to be careful with what he said to her. In fact, Rachelle had gone out of her way to fill him with fear for the young woman. He caught a glimpse of a strange model gun in a holster partially hidden beneath her overcoat. She didn't wear a uniform. A short navy skirt and vest, a white blouse and a rather long, beige overcoat. She also had a very steely gaze, and looked up at him expectantly, as if waiting to hear his excuse for momentarily interrupting her reign of terror.

"Uuuh. Nothing. I....I guess it's nothing," Brad stuttered, backing off. Danielle covered a smile and softly grabbed his sleeve.

"Hey. Let me guess. You've heard the following: I'm a tyrant, I'm a bitch, I'm a woman Hitler, I have no respect for my peers or superiors, etc.....And you heard it all off Rachelle."

Brad nodded slowly. Danielle smiled. 

"Has to be seen to be believed, I guess. I'm not going to bite your head off, I save it for Wesker and the S.F.S. Tell me, if you're so filled full of terror for me, why did you come over?"

Brad shook his head and shrugged. Danielle sighed.

"Tell me something else. I'm shorter than you, so why are you the one backing up?"

Brad grinned sheepishly. "I guess. Pretty sad, hey?"

Danielle shook her head. "No, I think it's sweet."

Brad looked at her in surprise. Danielle smiled.

"As I said. I might be a bit of a bitch, but I save it for they whom deserve my wrath."

Brad laughed. "Even though Rachelle-"

"Rachelle sometimes ruffles my fur. That's all."

"You've only been here how long?"

"Two weeks."

"You know how to make yourself well known, don't you."

Danielle shrugged and smiled. "As I said on the day I set foot in this precinct, 'if I'm not going to make waves, I'm going to make tsunamis'."

"Heads up! Here comes Captain Lanza!"

Wesker looked up. "Thanks for the warning, Frost. Back inside."

Joseph kept his head out the door, ignoring Wesker. "Hey Dani! Come and say hello!"

"Don't call her!" Wesker whined sarcastically. Jill laughed.

"She's not that bad. 'Sides. She was probably going to come in here anyway."

Joseph pulled his head in as Danielle walked in.

"Did someone call?"

"Don't you have your own office?" Wesker prodded impatiently.

"Well excuse me!" Danielle said, putting her hands on her hips. "I know when I'm not wanted."

"You can't possibly. You're in here all the time."

Danielle rolled her eyes. "I'm collating with the sister unit."

Wesker mirrored the action. "Sister unit my ass."

"It's big enough."

Wesker stood up. "I've had enough of this."

He walked out of the room, just as Brad walked in. Wesker glared at him as he walked past.

"Whoa. What crawled up his ass this morning and died?"

"Danielle," Rachelle said with a laugh. "As she does every day."

Danielle shot a glare in her direction, but didn't say anything. Brad looked at her.

"What's the problem?"

"Wesker hates me and I treat it like a game, which pisses him off."

Jill sighed. "Dani, you treat everything like a game. It just so happens that this precinct is your favourite."

Danielle shrugged. "So? When you have the attitude and charisma to pull it off, pissing off your peers can get you places. Like out of Chicago."

"You purposefully pissed off your chief to come here?"

"No, I turned the CPD into a circus and told my chief that I would fix it all if he'd send me to the first place that came to mind when I mentioned the company Umbrella. Just so happens it was here."

Joseph laughed. "So if I want to get out of this place, I come and see you?"

Danielle shook her head. "My chief was a little more incompetent than Irons. Irons wouldn't go for the circus thing. Besides. I kind of like him."

The S.T.A.R.S. all coughed sarcastically.

"What? What? I have him wrapped around my finger. What is there not to like about someone who, when you say jump, they ask how high?"

"How, dare I ask," Jill inquired, "Did you get him wrapped around your finger?"

"I'm not just a Grade-A bitch, but I'm also a Grade-A sweet talker and flirt."

"I'll believe that," Joseph said with a laugh. "But you didn't really....'Do' anything with that scumbag, did you?"

Danielle laughed. "Are you kidding? Any woman who dares to get that close to him has a hell of a whole lot more guts than I do. I wouldn't dream of taking it any further than just charming him into doing what I want."

"So you could practically run the precinct like that."

Danielle shrugged. "I'm not that good. Rachelle could probably be just as good at it as me."

Rachelle shook her head. "I appreciate the modest break in your big-mouthing yourself, but to be honest, I get quirked about being in the same room as the guy, let alone leading him on like that."

"So do I, Rachelle, I'm not super-human, you know."

Joseph looked at her. "You sure?"

"Shut up, Joe."

It was a few months later when Danielle had her next major run-in with S.T.A.R.S. She decided to increase the limited knowledge the S.F.S. had in the field by taking them to a rifle range on the edge of the city. She stood in the middle of the field and watched as the S.F.S. milled around like a class of school children on a field trip.

"Get in line and shut up! My year five class was better at being in order."

It was to no avail. The group ignored her. She sighed and pulled the Flashgun from its holster, firing it into the air. The team was instantly quiet, and the only sound was the buzzing resonance of the after-charge the bullet left in the air. She lowered her hand and put the gun back. 

"Now. If you will listen up, kiddies, we may even get to shoot a gun today," she said sarcastically, producing an air rifle. "This is a big gun. Most likely it is bigger than the little cap guns you have in your holsters. This air rifle is loaded with rubber bullets. Now, rubber bullets, I'm sure you know, hurt a hell of a lot, but they aren't deadly, unless of course you're weak-skinned or you're shot in a vulnerable area, such as-"

"Such as the ol' fella?"

Danielle lowered the gun and looked up. "Yes Jason. Such as the 'ol' fella'. But I don't think you'd really need to worry about that, now would you?"

There was a low murmur from some of the others. Jason crossed his arms.

"Yeah? And how would you know, Captain?"

She instantly lifted the gun and aimed at Jason, dropping the barrel a few extra inches.

"Let's find out then, shall we?"

Jason pulled back instantly, covering himself and ducking away, shaking his head quickly. He wasn't about to take any chances with Captain Lanza.

"No! No! It's alright!"

Elliot looked up. "Here's trouble. Looks like Captain Wesker had the same idea."

Danielle lowered the gun in a flash, spinning to face Wesker. He had his hands crossed, trying not to laugh.

"Captain Lanza. I didn't know you taught children."

"That's so not funny, Wesker."

"I know. It sounds like something you'd say."

Danielle weighed the rifle up and looked at him. "I have a loaded firearm in my hand, Wesker. Do you really want to get me riled up?"

Wesker shrugged. "It's loaded with rubber bullets. And besides. You wouldn't shoot me."

"You wanna try me?"

Wesker turned away and walked back to the S.T.A.R.S. Danielle glared at him and turned back to her team.

"You will all be issued with one of these rifles. At the far end of this range, there are multiple dummies of Jason O'Connor. Your task is to blast out of existence and otherwise maim these dummies from the opposite end of the range," she leaned forward and slid the safety off the rifle, smiling up at Jason. "I'll give 50 bucks to the first person to bean him in the 'ol' fella'."

Jason screwed up his nose at her. "You're a bitch, Captain."

She shrugged passively. "Oh, I know."

"Oh, and Captain Lanza?" 

Wesker walked up behind her. She spun around and lifted the rifle, aiming and pulling the trigger before Wesker could react. The rubber bullet struck him in the shin, and he jumped back with a yell, grabbing his leg. The S.T.A.R.S and the S.F.S. had to try not to laugh. Rachelle ran around the side of Danielle and leaned right on her shoulder.

"I can't believe you did that! You legend," she added quietly. Danielle turned away.

"An example," she said, shouldering the rifle, "Of how much a rubber bullet does in fact hurt."

.........Rachelle grinned, and agreed. Then she looked over her shoulder.

"Hey, here comes Brad now."

The two girls turned around. Brad walked up and put an arm around Danielle's shoulder.

"I reckon that Wesker wanted you to go in the hopes that something happens to you."

"I wouldn't be too surprised," Rachelle said, shrugging. "They hate each other."

Danielle smiled, and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about me, Brad. It's not you out there, and that's all you've got to worry about, now isn't it?"

Brad grinned and shook his head. "Oh, you."

Danielle looked up as one of the new members of S.T.A.R.S, a young girl named Rebecca Chambers, walked past. She sighed.

"Do you remember when she first came in? We were so mean to her."

Brad shook his head. "I wasn't there."

"Neither was I," Rachelle put in. "But Jill and Chris said you were pretty slack."

"I was.".........

Danielle sat on the desk as usual in the silent S.T.A.R.S. office. Jill and Chris were sitting at their own desks, frantically tapping away on their keyboards bringing up as many files as possible on the latest case. They were having a race. The timer went of with a sharp ring, breaking the silence. Chris sat back in his chair, stretching.

"I bet I got more than you did, Jilly-babe."

"Don't call me that Chris, I hate it."

Danielle smiled. "I know that entire database. Out of 89 files Jill has...."

"76."

"And Chris has....."

"Argh! You beat me again Jill. I only got 64," Chris started to spin around in circles on his chair. "Don't you reckon swivel chairs were the best office invention since a fax machine?"

"No, masking tape was," Jill said, standing up and whacking a piece across Chris' mouth. He ripped it off with a laugh and stood up, walking to the dartboard that was hung right next to the door. He pulled out the darts and sat back down.

"Let's pin a photo of Wesker up there and see who hits him first," Chris suggested. Jill laughed.

"Yeah. He'll walk through the door just as you take a sour shot."

"Bullseye! Right in the old kisser!" Danielle cheered, as Chris took a mock throw. Chris threw the dart and it missed the board just as the door opened. The young girl in the doorway ducked to the side as the red dart shot past. She squeaked and looked around in surprise.

"I.....Is this.....S.T.A.R.S.?"

"Unfortunately yes," Danielle said as she jumped up and retrieved the dart, nodding to two officers who looked at her oddly as she picked it up. As she walked past she led the girl into the room and closed the door. "And what can we do for you?"

"I...I'm Rebecca Chambers....and uhh, I'm meant to be here they said."

Jill smiled. "You must be the new girl. Your desk is right there, make yourself at home. Sorry about the dart."

"You really would've been sorry about the dart if you had've hit her," Danielle put in. She turned to her. "So tell me, how old are you Rebecca? You just look a little young to be in a special services force."

"I'm 18...." she said slowly. Danielle nodded.

"And you've completed high school? What do you specialise in?"

"Uhhh medical."

"Uh-huh. Well that's nice. I'm Danielle Lanza. I'm 25 years old and I've worked as a Detective Sergeant in Chicago, and I'm now the Captain of the RPD Special Forces Service. I've attended Oklahoma State and passed through academy in Boston. I'm a weapons expert and a crack-shot. I modeled my own gun and completed high school in my spare time. Nice to meet you."

The shorthaired girl was silent. Danielle nodded to her and left the room quickly. Rebecca turned to Jill.

"Is that all true?"

"Danielle never lies unless it's absolutely necessary, so I'd say that would all be true. But she's only doing that because she's sizing you up. If you let her stomp you flat now, she's gonna see you that way for the rest of your working life. When she comes back, stand up to her. Muster all the strength you have inside to tell her where you stand. Don't worry, she won't get angry."

Rebecca looked around nervously. "I...I guess so...."

Chris was watching the clock. "Barry.........."

Rebecca wandered around the office, looking at the trophies in the bookcase on the far wall.

"......Rachelle........"

Jill rolled her eyes and smiled. "Most of those are Chris' for marksmanship."

"......Brad........"

Rebecca looked at a photo of the S.T.A.R.S members. "They're all in this team?"

".....Kenneth.....Forest....Joseph......"

Rebecca looked at him, then at Jill. "What's he doing?"

"5..........4..........3.........2........1-"

Suddenly the door burst open and Danielle rushed back in and grabbed Rebecca.

"Hey! This is Rebecca Chambers. She's a medical officer and is only 18 years old. Say hello to your new team member guys!"

The S.T.A.R.S. members she had managed to gather up all laughed. Rebecca turned to Danielle.

"Can I just say one thing, Captain Lanza?"

"Say away, Rebecca."

"You can't walk all over me like you seem to think. I'm quite capable of introducing myself and though I must admit that you are an extremely frightening person to a rookie, I hope that we can get along. I'm not a doormat."

Danielle stood stock still for a moment. Then suddenly she burst out in laughter.

"I know you're not a doormat, Rebecca. Good thing you stood up to me. There are worse people than me in this force, and you're gonna need to stand up to them too."

With that she turned and bustled the others out the door again as quickly as she had come in, and the room was once again silent. Jill and Chris were quiet for barely a few seconds. Then they cracked up. Jill shook her head.

"She likes you. You can tell. I honestly thought she was going to flip her lid for a moment there!"

Rebecca laughed awkwardly. "So did I."

Raccoon City's idea of a municipal pool was merged with a nice café-cross-milk-bar that was usually populated by teenagers and young adults in search of their disappearing youth. Today it was invaded by a group of young off-duty cops. Some of the S.T.A.R.S. members were hanging around one of the tables outside the café. The bright sun reflected off the creamy yellow tiles and the pale concrete footpath that led down to the pebblecrete walkways that surrounded the fifty-meter pool and the kiddies wading pools off on the other side where the actual pool gate was. This café and its milk bar and pool-shop (as well as the building for the indoor heated pools) lined the entire pool on all sides. It was nice little place to go out, and they'd chosen it today. 

Brad, Jill and Joseph were sitting around the table and Chris floating around the counter. Jill was wearing a small blouse tied high up at the front and a sarong, Brad and Joseph both in board shorts and tees. Chris was too. As they sat there chattering loudly and laughing with each other, Rachelle, Forest and Danielle walked up. Forest was wearing red and black board shorts past his knees and a white singlet top with a towel slung lazily over his shoulder. Rachelle had similar boardies, blue and pink and a bikini top. Over one arm she had a satchel bag. Danielle for once had nothing covering her arms: a spaghetti-string bikini top and a white denim skirt. She'd managed to talk Forest into carrying her bag.

Rachelle hailed them loudly and Joseph slapped his hand on the table, laughing.

"How's it goin' ladies?"

"And Forest," Forest added in.

"Yeah, I used the term collectively."

"Do I look like a chick to you?" he pressed with a faked expression of dissatisfaction. Joseph shrugged.

"Yeah man."

Forest's only reply was a one-fingered salute. Rachelle tossed her things onto the table.

"I'm getting right in. See you in the pool!"

With that she ran off. Forest watched after her, and then turned to Danielle.

"Rachelle's wearing baggy pants, so you can't see her ass."

"Forest," she shrugged him off. "Hey guys."

"Hello Dani, you aren't wearing sleeves for once?" Jill smiled. Danielle shrugged.

"It's kinda a bit hot, don't you think?"

"That's a nice skirt."

"Yeah?" she looked at it. "Found it the other day at the mall, you should go have a look."

"I think I might," she grinned. "I like it."

"Here we go," Joseph looked at Brad. "Dani, Jill and Forest are going to start talking about fashion again."

"Shut up Joey," Forest returned.

"Well Mr. Designer-Board-Shorts, how come you decided to rock up with the girls?"

"'Cos Dani has a nice ass," he replied simply. Brad glanced at him, but Danielle just shrugged when she noticed it.

"He's shit stirring," she whispered to him. "Don't worry about it."

He gave her a funny look. "What?"

"Oh I've seen you," she smirked. "Everytime he makes a comment like that you start to get defensive. He's only stirring."

Brad smiled. "Transparent?"

"Clear as water."

"Damn," he grinned. "But you know…"

"I know what?"

"He's right."

"Brad!" she planted her hands on her hips and tried incredibly hard not to start laughing. Forest reached out and high-fived him, all laughing. But as he looked back to Dani, he frowned.

"What's that?" he pointed to three thick white marks on her left pale-tan arm. Danielle looked at it and tried to answer normally, but Forest and Brad, who could see her gaze, knew that she'd answered false.

"Oh… an accident when I was a kid. Nothing much."

"That's a ripper of a scar," Joseph stood up and leaned over the table. "What the hell did you do, anyway?"

"C… can't remember," she answered quickly. Joseph bought it, but Brad and Forest met eyes. They didn't. But they stayed quiet. Forest replaced his confused look with a smile.

"C'mon Dani, let's go join Rachelle."

"You coming Brad?"

He shook his head. "I just had lunch. I'll join you guys later."

Joseph jumped up and grabbed Jill's arm as Chris came over and said a hello through a mouthful of hot chips as he sat down.

"Come on Jill! Let's see who can do the best bomb!"

She laughed and let him drag her down to the pool. Forest shook his head.

"Dickhead. Awww! Joey you can't bomb for shit!" he called out as they entered the pool. Forest pulled off his singlet revealing a toned six-pack. "I'll show you how to do a goddamn bomb!"

He ran off after them and Danielle just stayed where she was and laughed. Chris offered her the plate of chips, which she shook her head to, leaning back on the table.

"Forest works out."

"Oooh. Danielle's perving on the team," surprisingly it was Brad who said it. He was always the one to get defensive about stuff like that. "'Course Forest works out. He's Special Forces."

"He's alright," she admitted. "But he's a better friend."

Chris laughed. "I thought you were going in?"

"I'll wait till I'm asked. I'm not in a hurry to run around in a swimsuit."

"We are," Brad joked, pointing to him and Chris. "I mean we're in a hurry to see you run around in a swimsuit."

"I'd pay money," Chris grinned. Danielle was gaping, trying not to burst into laughter.

"Oh Chris, Brad I'd expect that from Forest!"

The boys laughed. 

"We're just having some fun," Chris leaned back and smiled. Brad pinched one of his chips.

"Yeah. I don't get to take the mickey out of people often, it's usually the other way around," he said. "We're all friends here."

"Sexist bastards," she hissed playfully. "I get it from Mister Speyer all the damn time."

"You're quite welcome to pick on us," Chris invited. Danielle held out her hands.

"That's just it, I can't pick on you both! Not without it seeming like I'm a hussy."

"Forest's a man-hussy," Brad said and the two boys started sniggering to each other. "He likes the ladies."

"I can't remember when he last had a girlfriend though," Chris thought. "You just can't imagine a Mrs Speyer. God'd have had to have made two of 'em to get away with it."

"I'm getting in the pool so I can get away from you chauvinistic prats."

"We're behind you all the way," Chris called. "We love to be behind the ladies."

"You play Tomb Raider just to watch Lara Croft's ass, Chris," Brad accused and they started laughing. Danielle sat on the edge of the pool and Rachelle swam up.

"Get in the water you wuss," she laughed. Danielle shook her head with a laugh.

"I had to come down here. Chris and Brad are acting like Forest."

"Brad?"

"Believe it or not."

Rachelle burst into hysterics, splashing water up. She waved and freestyled away. Danielle leaned her elbows on her knees and stared away at the buildings beyond the pool. Everything began to fade as she put herself into a trance. But she was suddenly snapped out of that trance as she found herself toppling down into the cold chlorinated pool. Floundering from utter shock, she surfaced to see Forest roaring with laughter. He'd come up silently and shoved her in, seating himself where she'd been sitting, laughing. Rachelle, Jill and Joseph swam up, also chuckling to themselves.

"What's wrong Dani? I thought you wanted to get in the pool?"

"In my own time you prick!" she cried at him. Forest laughed. 

"Hey, I'm no mind reader, you know."

"Bastard!" she threw water up at him and he put an arm up to block it. When he wasn't looking she jumped up and grabbed his arms, dragging him in. He fell with a huge splash, and surfaced a moment later. The four of them began trying to dunk each other in a childish play of water games. Forest got Rachelle aside for a moment.

"What happened to Danielle's arm?"

"Huh?"

"How long has she had those three scars on her arm?"

"Dunno. Didn't even know she had scars on her arm."

"In Academy?"

"No, she didn't have them then."

Forest frowned. "I think there's something she's not telling us the full story of."

"Between Academy and here? She could've taken a hit in Chicago."

"I guess," Forest replied dubiously. "But I have a weird feeling that it's something else."

"Forget about it," Rachelle laughed chirpily. "We'll find out if it's anything worth worrying about, obviously it's something she wants to forget, so let her forget. Let's go. Jill, Joseph and Danielle are racing."

"Hmmm."

"What?"

"Huh?"

"What's hmmm?"

"Nothing you rotten eavesdropper," Danielle threw a Mintie at Forest, and he caught it before it hit.

"You don't 'hmmm' for nothing," he grinned, and tossed the Mintie into the air a few times as Danielle shook her head.

"_I _do."

"Oh?"

"I hmmm when I'm trying to remember what it was I was going to say to you."

"So you were going to talk to me?"

"I think so," Danielle grinned. "But it must've been important."

"Must've been a lie," he replied, unwrapping the sweet and sticking it in his mouth. "Thanks."

"No worries. Are you going to the 4th July bash?"

"Yeah," he replied. "After all, Chris' sister has a nice ass. All the ladies have a nice ass. You can't see Rachelle's ass, her pants are heaps baggy. Jill's got a tight ass. You've got a real nice ass."

"I'd really prefer it if you kept your eyes off my ass, Speyer."

"It's compliment," he laughed indignantly. "You've got a nice ass. What's so insulting about that? I'd love it if some chick came up to me and said 'Jesus Forest you have got a nice ass'. I'm sure Brad thinks you have a nice ass too."

"Yeah well Brad's a nice guy and he's not into being extroverted."

"Well, it's so obvious that he likes you, you know. Joseph likes you. I just think you have a nice ass."

"Will you shut up about my ass? You've got an obsession over my ass."

"I was telling you the truth!" he clapped his hands at her and she threw another Mintie at him. "I love the ladies. All the Special Forces ladies have nice asses. I'm sure Rachelle has a nice ass; she just hides it in baggy pants. I love the mini-skirt dress and blouse ensemble you've got. It really brings out your ass."

"Shut the hell up!" she was beginning to laugh. Forest did have that effect.

"Alright," he conceded. "Give me another Mintie and I'll shut up about your gorgeous ass."

"Try hard," she accused lightly, throwing him another lolly. "So if guys had nice asses you'd be into them too?"

"I am _not _that way inclined nor will I ever be," he began. "But if a guy had a nice ass, I'd tell him."

"What about the S.T.A.R.S. guys?" 

"Well, Joey has a bit of a case of 'Skimpy-Ass'. In other words, he hasn't got much ass to begin with. Chris has a 'Macho-Ass', where his ass is big, but it matches his chest and ego size, so it's all in proportion. Kenneth has 'I'm-To-Sexy-For-My-Ass' syndrome. That's where he spends so much time fluffing himself up, he don't care what his ass looks like. Enrico and Barry have 'Old-Guy-Ass'. Their asses are getting floppy 'cos they're getting old. Brad, he has 'Computer-Guy-Ass. His ass is tight, but it gets flat 'cos he's on the radio and the computer all the time. Wesker… well, Wesker is a different matter. You see; it ain't about his ass at all. Wesker's 'Anal-Retentive', so all that his ass comes out like is a bit of two-by-four, cos he's so busy clenching the damn thing into his actual asshole, it turns into a tiny little excuse for an ass. I wouldn't waste my time on Wesker's ass. 'Becca doesn't count. She's got a nice ass 'cos she's only eighteen. That's natural in teenagers."

Danielle was in hysterics. "I am _seriously _concerned for you, Forest," she managed through her laughter. "You are one sick little boy."

"Why? 'Cos I think you've got a nice ass? Oh wait, I'm not meant to say that. Okay, you've got great tits… no, that's not PC. Okay, you've got a great personality… no, that's what you say to someone when you wanna screw 'em. Dani, let's just leave it and say this is a totally platonic relationship we have here and the only one of us two who'd ever want to change that is you, cos you think I'm damn sexy."

"Forest, quit while you're ahead."

"Do you think I have a nice ass?"

"I don't have to answer that question."

"Ah-ha! You _do _think I have a nice ass," he accused triumphantly, pointing at her. "You won't answer my question, so you must think I have a nice ass. Do I have a nice ass?"

"Alright, yes Forest, you have a nice ass. Happy?"

"Did you mean it?"

"Yeah, you have a nice ass."

Forest laughed and leaned back over his chair to look up at her. "Thanks for the Minties."

"No worries."

"Tell you what?"

"What?"

"Chief Irons has a _huge _ass."

........Danielle shrugged. "What a bore this is. We've got so little to do we're reminiscing."

"That's sad," Brad said, rolling his eyes. Rachelle suddenly laughed. 

"Oh, I remembered something else. What about the Joseph-Danielle-Brad thing!"

Brad looked up darkly. "I rather that you wouldn't."

Danielle smiled. "I thought it was sweet. Even after that little disagreement. Joseph looked cute with a black eye."

"Danielle!"  Brad exclaimed. Danielle looked up at him curiously.

"What's wrong, Braddy? Do you like me or something?"

Brad went silent and looked away. Rachelle and Danielle looked at each other. Rachelle laughed again.

"Yeah, I think there's something goin' down here," she said delightedly. Then she nodded. "How about Joseph's nose?"

Brad shook his head. " I'm going to strangle you, Rachelle."

Rachelle smiled sweetly. "Well now, why would you want to do that?".............

Rachelle looked across the table at Brad and Danielle. He was glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, but not making any attempt to talk. Rachelle grinned, and set down her milkshake. They were at a diner called 'Emmy's', a favourite of the group. Lately, and for a while actually, Brad had been acting very strangely around Danielle, and Rachelle was growing suspicious about him. But she also knew that Joseph was working on trying to win her over somehow. Rachelle pushed her milkshake away and looked across at them, smirking.

"Well, what's up with you two? You've hardly said a thing to each other since this morning, when you both said 'hi'. There must be something going on."

Danielle shrugged. "Nothing up with me, I've just got nothing to talk about at the moment."

Brad was a little more reluctant to answer, and for a moment, it looked like he was about to shrink away to avoid the question. But he quietly mirrored Danielle's shrug.

"I'm not in a talkative mood, that's all."

Rachelle eyed him suspiciously. "Oh? Okay. Listen, Dani? You know about Joseph, right?"

Danielle suddenly began to giggle and grabbed Brad's arm to get his attention.

"Oh, oh. You have to hear this. You'll never guess what Joseph's been up to lately."

Brad rolled his eyes. "Do I want to?"

Danielle shrugged. "I think it's sort of cute, you know."

Rachelle nodded. "Yeah, Dani's got a secret admirer who isn't so secret. Joseph's been all cushy over her for the past couple of days. He's got a major crush."

Brad looked up, a weird look in his eyes. Danielle nodded.

"He asked me out."

Brad looked at her. "What did you say?" he asked quickly.

"I said not to get his hopes up."

Rachelle nodded. "But you've gotta hand it to him, though. You have to have guts to ask Danielle something like that. She's shot down every guy who's made a pass at her for the past God-knows how many years."

Danielle sighed and shook her head. "There's only one person I'd ever agree to, but I'm not sure who they are just yet."

"Aww, that's so cute," Rachelle mocked. "Snow White over here is waiting for her prince to come."

Danielle glared at her. "You know, Rachelle, one day I will kill you."

"No you won't," Rachelle laughed, "Because deep down inside, you're not as much of a tyrant as everyone thinks you are."

"Hello ladies and Brad," Forest slid into the booth next to Rachelle. "Hello and how are we all this fine lunch-hour?"

"Oh, good," Danielle smiled. "We're just talking about Joseph."

"See? I told you he thinks you have a nice ass. Brad thinks you have a nice ass, don't you Brad?"

He didn't say anything but glared daggers at Forest, who grinned and winked. Forest then smiled a charming smile he was famous for.

"Joseph isn't your type, Dani."

"I know. He doesn't seem to realise that though."

"I'll have a chat to him if you like," Forest shrugged. "Joey listens to me."

"Oh, it should be alright," she smiled. "I'm sure he'll get the message eventually."

"Joey gets over things fast. Once he's completely shot down, he'll be alright in about a week."

"I don't want to hurt his feelings, I like him as friend, but not in the way he's trying for. Like you Forest. The other day you were going on about my goddamn ass. I can take it from you because we're only friends; you're only joking around. I know when I say to keep away from my ass you're going to take it as a joke because it was intended as a joke. But when it's serious, it's a little harder."

"True," he replied, "But if you want someone to have a talk with Joey, I'm your man."

"My Tree."

"Shut up."

"What?" Danielle laughed, and Brad began to smile. "Come on Tree, we've all got nice asses here, as you so eloquently always put it. What harm's a nickname?"

"Oh, well, when Wesker found out he was Albert Wanker, he wasn't too pleased."

"That's Wesker though. And besides. We're all cops. We're allowed to be sub-mature."

Brad stormed into the room, throwing the door open, and sat down beside Rachelle in the S.T.A.R.S. office. Rachelle noticed him.

"Hey Brad, what's up?"

He slumped in his chair, sulking. "Nothing," he said aggressively.

"Come on, what is it? You'll feel better if you talk to me."

Brad sighed. "Oh, it's Joseph. He's been saying shit about me, especially to Danielle. I'm sick of it."

"I know, but sitting there getting grumpy isn't going to fix things. Talk to him. Sort it out. Anyway, I'm not sure if Danielle is going to listen to him. She's getting really annoyed with him since he keeps following her around and keeps asking her out and just harassing her in general."

Brad's voice changed. It started to get quieter, as if Brad was concentrating all his energy on not getting angry.

"Really?" he said through clenched teeth.

"Yeah. She's trying to keep from punching him out."

Just then, Joseph walked into the office. Brad rose up out of his seat and tried to walk over to Joseph, fists swinging. Rachelle jumped up and tried to physically restrain him, but Brad was so strong when he was angry that he broke her usually strong grip. He walked over to Joseph, grabbed him by the collar, lifted him out his seat and slammed him against the nearest wall, which was behind his desk.

"Brad! What the hell are you doing! Let go of me!" Joseph pushed Brad off him.

"No! Why don't you leave Dani alone? I mean, she doesn't even like you! She's this close to punching you out!" Brad pushed Joseph back.

"Well, if she had told me to leave her alone, I would!" Joseph shoved Brad again.

"She did!"

"Anyway, why are you sticking up for her? Do you like her or something?"

Brad couldn't control himself. Joseph had hit a weak spot. Before he could stop himself, Brad swung out and punched Joseph so hard in the nose, he could hear the crack as the cartilage in Joseph's nose shattered and blood sprayed everywhere. Joseph, blinded by pain, instinctively reached out and hit Brad in the eye. Danielle, sitting bewildered in the back of the room discussing something with Barry and Forest, stood up and ran over. She sprang between them, and threw her arms up, separating them.

"Oh, stop it!"

Brad fell back, startled, but also in pain and he could feel his eye beginning to swell. Danielle stood back and brushed him off.

"You boys are so immature!" she yelled, turning to the two of them. Then she looked at Joseph, who was doubled over in pain, his hands covering his face, blood seeping through his fingers.

"Joseph," she said quietly, "I did tell you to leave me alone. Now let me see that. You fool. This is what happens when you all fight like little boys. You get hurt," she looked up at Rebecca, sitting at her desk with a look of pure shock on her face. "Rebecca, could you get some ice for the boys please? Thanks," she turned back to Joseph. "You brought it on yourself, you know, and Brad did a much better job of what I was about to do to you than I would have had the heart to do."

Joseph looked up. "Rachelle was right, you are a bitch."

Danielle stood up, her hands on her hips. "Look. As far as I'm concerned, you can all go get stuffed."

Then she left the room with Rachelle, and as they left, Brad turned to follow, glaring at Joseph before he left.

........Danielle shook her head. "To this day, I don't know why you got so worked up about Joseph having a crush over me. After all, the way Forest talks to me…"

Rachelle shrugged. "I thought it was more fun at the Fourth of July thing. That was so much fun. Remember, we met Chris' sister?"

Danielle nodded. "That's right. She fit in really well."

"Chris forced her to."

Danielle laughed and sighed, looking up at the helicopter. "Oh well.............."

Danielle leaned against the wall and sighed. Looking around the room she knew she recognised everyone's faces, but she felt like she wasn't even meant to be there. Parties weren't her thing, even semi-formal ones. She rolled her eyes as Rachelle came running up to her.

"Have you seen Chris' date?" she asked excitedly. Danielle shook her head.

"Chris has a date? You see something new every day."

Rachelle grabbed her arm and dragged her into the center of the room where the S.T.A.R.S. were gathered in a little group, talking to each other. Chris was a little way away, talking to a young brunette. Rachelle pointed.

"See? Over there."

Danielle squinted at them for a moment and shook her head. "Hang on a sec, there's something strange about this set-up, I'm gonna get to the bottom of this."

She briskly walked up to them and waved. Chris motioned to her.

"Oh, Claire. This is Danielle Lanza."

The girl extended her hand with a smile. "Hi. I've heard about you. I'm Claire. Claire Redfield."

Danielle nodded smoothly. "That explains everything," she replied, and looked over her shoulder at Rachelle, who wasn't even paying attention. She was talking to Richard and Kenneth about something. Claire looked at her strangely.

"Beg yours? What?"

Danielle laughed. "Oh, just a minor misunderstanding. Rachelle couldn't be bothered coming over herself so she told me that you were Chris' date."

Chris burst out into laughter and so did Claire. Claire shook her head.

"Chris? Get a date? Come on, get real!"

"Hey!" Chris retorted. "I could get a date with my eyes closed."

"No, that wouldn't be enough," Danielle mused. "You might need a paper bag too."

Chris glared at her for a moment before shaking his head, laughing. Claire shrugged as Chris craned his neck to see if he could spot Rachelle.

"Shellie! Hey! Rachelle! Come over here!"

Rachelle nodded and excused herself from Richard and Kenneth as she came trotting over.

"What's up?"

Danielle motioned to Claire and Chris. "Meet Chris' 'date'."

Rachelle shook her hand. "Rachelle McDermott."

"Claire Redfield."

Rachelle seemed surprised. "You're not Chris' date?"

She shook her head with a laugh. Rachelle nodded.

"You must be Chris' wife."

"Rachelle! You are so dense!" Danielle cried through a fit of laughter. Chris and Claire were almost falling over with laughter. "Claire is Chris' sister!"

"Ohhhh. Okay. Sorry about that."

Claire waved her hand at her. "No, it's alright. I haven't had a good laugh in ages."

Rachelle turned to Danielle and shrugged. Danielle returned the shrug.

............"I didn't see Brad at that party though," Rachelle cast a sideward glance. "Or Joseph, for that matter."

Brad looked at her, but didn't say anything. Danielle smiled and walked over to the helicopter.

"I'll see you later."

"Do you know how long this'll take?" Rachelle asked.

Danielle smiled. "We'll get in, kick their backsides black and blue, save the lost hikers and be back before supper."

Rachelle grinned. "Don't you think it'd be the other way around?"

"If what you're implying is what I think it is, I wouldn't go any further on that statement."

Brad and Rachelle laughed and waved goodbye to their friend. Once the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. Bravo Team was in the helicopter, it took off, leaving the well-wishing Alpha Team standing on the rooftop. But to the back, the slyly grinning Wesker stood, contemplating his plans, and knowing that what awaited the fated group was more than what they ever dreamed they'd have expected.


	4. 2: And The Secret Breaks

Chapter 2: And The Secret Breaks

This young lady from the S.F.S. had intrigued Rebecca Chambers since their first brief meeting in the S.T.A.R.S. office. Rebecca hadn't really got to know her, and was sort of curious. S.F.S. Captain Danielle A. Lanza was legendary around the station due to her demeanour and attitude towards superiors. Apparently, she was a crack shot and could hit anything from over a hundred yards, and was one of the toughest women, including Rachelle and Jill, on the force.

Rebecca knew from overhearing conversations that Wesker, and even Chief Irons were apprehensive of her, and though she was a renegade officer who rarely followed orders she disagreed with, she had never been reprimanded, and Rebecca put it down to fear. She had only ever seen the captain once or twice, only really when she was in the office at the same time as her. She tended to get harder to find as the days went on. Rachelle began to refer to her as the 'wild white wolf that nobody ever sees from Alaska', and that her supposed habitat was in the Umbrella section of the library. Everything she'd heard was nothing compared to what she was really like. She had heard a lot about her off Rachelle, Brad and Jill, but nothing too close to what she had seen of Captain Lanza so far.

Rachelle had said that if you're on her good side, she hardly ever yells at you, and if you were to get in her bad books you'd know about it. Brad had said that she was very protective and could be very loud, but all in all was a nice girl. So far, Danielle had been utterly silent, without moving a muscle, looking at the floor of the chopper. She had been that way since they had left Raccoon City. Taking a chance, she tapped her shoulder. Danielle sat up with a start, and after she saw who it was, settled down and smiled warmly.

"Oh, hi Rebecca."

Rebecca smiled back cautiously. "I don't mean to pry, Captain Lanza, but, umm, I can't help but, ahh, wonder about you."

Danielle sat for a minute, and then began to laugh. "Oh dear. Someone's told you the story of how I lose my temper, now haven't they? Don't worry, I won't go off unless you're someone like Wesker. He really rubs my fur the wrong way."

Richard Aitken, Bravo Team's communications specialist, piped up. 

"What I want to know is why he's rubbing your fur in the first place."

Danielle rolled her eyes and flipped him off. "Oh, that's just rude. There are teenagers present."

Rebecca giggled at the remark. Forest looked at her.

"Hey, you're too young!"

Rebecca stifled her laughter and grinned. "I only wanted to know why you don't seem to care about what people think or say about you. Like when I told you where to go in the S.T.A.R.S. office, you only laughed. Other people I know would've punched my lights out."

Danielle sighed and sat back in her seat. "Yeah but that's only because Jill told you to. No really, you see, the reason is, I believe that people can think or say whatever the damn hell they like, because that's their own opinions, and isn't everyone entitled to their own opinions?"

Rebecca nodded. "So it doesn't worry you, if say, someone thought you were a stuck-up snob, for instance?"

"Are you asking me, because it's what someone has told you?"

Rebecca shook her head quickly. "No, nothing like that, it's just, I have heard a lot of different 'opinions' about you, and I can't help but wonder which ones are true."

Danielle thought for a moment. "Well, all of them, actually."

Rebecca's eyes widened. "ALL of them?"

Danielle nodded. "And none of them."

"And none? How does that work?"

"They're all opinions, Rebecca."

Richard looked up at her. "Hey, Captain Lanza. I'll take your advice and try not to show you that it's my informed _opinion _that the male gender tends to outrank you females, in the field and in bed."

Danielle put her head to the side. "I'm flattered. But tell me, how do you gather that?"

Enrico grinned. "Haven't you noticed that there are only three female S.T.A.R.S. members? That's cause men are stronger, smarter and tougher."

This statement caused Danielle to sarcastically sputter and cough as if she was choking, and by the time she had finished, the guys were arguing with each other over things that only men could argue about and Forest, who was sitting between the two guys looked to Danielle and shrugged. Danielle grinned and turned to Rebecca.

"And Rebecca, I have just taught you how to ark up a pair of brainless men."

Wesker looked up as the transmission light on the comms equipment at the end of the room began to flash and the machine began to beep. Jill stood up and turned it on. Adjusting the dials, she picked up Edward Dewey, the pilot of Bravo Team's helicopter.

"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me, HQ? Over."

Jill switched on the microphone. "We can hear you, Dewey, what's up? Over."

"We're having engine troubles, have to land. There's a-"

Suddenly the transmission ended, and all that they could hear was white noise, static. Chris sat up slowly, and the rest of Alpha Team went silent. Wesker stood up.

"Alright. Saddle up, team, we're goin' for a little ride."

Alpha Team's enthusiasm was through the roof as they prepared to go out to look for Bravo Team. Brad was in the pilot seat before you could say 'Prepare the helicopter', and everyone was gathering all the equipment they needed, being barked at every other second by Rachelle to 'hurry up', 'be careful', 'stop just standing there and help', or 'get more of this'. Barry looked at her as she ran out onto the rooftop.

"What now, Ms McDermott? Want us to polish your shoes before we go?"

"With our tongues!" Joseph offered, mocking hopefulness, from where he was near the rooftop door. Rachelle shot a glance in his direction, but ignored him, and kept going, leaning on the door of the helicopter cockpit. Brad leaned out the door to hear what she was saying over the sound of the rotor blades spinning.

"Brad, keep the helicopter going. We'll be ready in a few minutes."

Brad looked around for a minute. "Looks like we're ready now, do you think we should let Wesker know?"

Rachelle turned to Barry. "Barry! You ready to go?"

Barry nodded, with his arms crossed. "I was ready five minutes ago Rachelle, we're just waiting on Jill and Chris."

Joseph nodded. "No worries, I'll go get them. Kay?"

They nodded, and Joseph ran off to find the two absent S.T.A.R.S. members. Wesker approached her.

"Get in the helicopter, Rachelle, they'll be along in a moment, and we'll be able to leave right away."

Rachelle, for once, quickly agreed with him, and jumped into the chopper, right behind the pilot's seat. Brad glanced over, and put on the radio headset that Rachelle passed over to him, pulling on his helmet.

"Thanks. I gave mine to Danielle before they left. Listen, if we get down there, and I have no choice but to take off and leave you guys there, just call me up on this radio and give me your location, once you get to a safe place, and I'll come and get you. Try your best to stay together, as this is the only one I have. Also, if you find Danielle, contact me straight away."

"Why?"

"Just because," he replied vaguely. Rachelle nodded, and took the small, hand-held radio he handed to her. She looked up as Jill and Chris came running out, following close behind Joseph. They jumped into the helicopter without a second thought, and once Wesker was in and the door was shut, they took off, out towards the Arklay Mountains. No-one knew what had happened to Bravo Team, but they were sure that is was more than just a little engine trouble, no matter how much Wesker assured them that it was.

"This is great. Just great," Enrico grumbled angrily. "I thought you serviced the chopper, Rebecca."

Danielle turned around and looked at Enrico. "Leave the girl alone. These things happen."

Then she shrugged and took a few steps away. Rebecca followed her, feeling slightly safer around her. Danielle looked at her out of the corner of her eye and smiled slightly. Enrico turned to Edward.

"Dewey. Do you think you can get the chopper radio working again?"

Edward shrugged. "I guess, but it may take a bit. Give me some time, okay?"

Enrico nodded and turned away. Kenneth looked over at Danielle.

"Hey Dani. What's the bet that all that toughness you exhibit in the office is just a cover and you're really piss-weak in the field?"

Danielle turned to him. "You seem to be forgetting something, Kenny. Like the fact that I already have a file on my fieldwork. I'm surprised you haven't seen it. Your captain with the big nose has already stuck his large proboscis into it."

Richard, who was digging around in the down chopper turned around, Danielle's side-pack in his hand.

"Nice wording. This yours?"

Danielle caught the bag as he tossed it to her.

"Thanks Richard." She looked around cautiously. "I hope we get out of here soon. Who knows what bugs are out here."

"Big bad Dani Lanza is afraid of bugs?!" Forest exploded with sudden laughter. Danielle whirred around and clamped her hand over his mouth quickly.

"Shut up!" 

She kept a hold on Forest from behind. No one said a word, but they could hear something. Rebecca edged towards Danielle.

"What's that?"

Danielle shook her head, easing away from Forest. He listened.

"Sounds like some sort of dog."

Danielle thought for a moment. "Guys, I think we'd better go somewhere else. I saw a house on the other side of the trees over there. Come on, let's go."

They started to back slowly up towards the chopper. It happened suddenly. With a ringing crash something burst in through the chopper windscreen and a blood-curdling scream from the co-pilot Kevin announced their arrival. The dogs attacked with lightning speed and took down Edward in no time. He fired at them, but to no avail. Danielle wasted no time in turning around and racing off. The dogs gave chase immediately. Rebecca tripped on a grass root and went toppling forward. Danielle caught her as she rushed past and pulled her along behind her.

Danielle reached the doors of the mansion first, and found them open to their relief, holding the door open for the others. As soon as Forest, who was bringing up the rear, was through, she slammed the door, but the lead dog managed to get its snout in. Danielle pushed hard on the door, trying to force the dog away. The other dogs were gaining quickly. In a last attempt, she pulled her gun from its holster and jammed the barrel into its mouth, pulling the trigger. The dog flew back in a burst of blood and sparks, hitting the other dogs and slowing them so that she could get the door shut. She slammed the door and leaned against it, catching her breath. She looked across at the Bravo Team members who were milling aimlessly in the main hall.

"Now do you see why I find it more entertaining to follow Umbrella?"

"Do you know something we don't?" Kenneth asked shortly. "How do we know that those... things, are from Umbrella?"

Danielle leaned down and picked something up off the floor. "Let's see. Ma-39. The code used by Umbrella for a bio-specimen. I'd say that this would be fairly weak, considering."

"Considering what?"

"The largest number I've counted so far is Ma-121. And that was a mean mother, I swear."

Her hand wandered to her arm.

"You seem to have dealt with something like this before," Enrico said, crossing his arms. Danielle shrugged.

"I've found the tags. I've been given these tags by people who claim to have removed them from 'strange monsters' in the neighbourhood. This... this came off the dog when I shot it."

Rebecca looked at the green tag in her hand.

"How did it come off if it was attached?"

Danielle grinned. "Its head blew up, Rebecca. And bits of head went everywhere," she made a gesture to describe the manner in which 'the pieces of head went everywhere', before kicking at a piece of bloodied fur lying near the door jam. Rebecca coiled back in disgust.

"And that's nothing to you?"

"When you've seen it all before... Look, Rebecca, you're a first aid officer. You were recruited as one. Put it this way. You're bound to see things just as bad or worse in the autopsy room or the field during your service in the force than I can ever describe to you as a field officer... unless I've been there, of course." Rebecca shivered. Danielle walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. "Just don't think about it, okay? That's a fair way away."

She walked away and sat on the bottom step of the huge staircase in the lobby. Outside, they could hear the other dogs barking and howling, scratching at the door. Danielle rubbed her eyes as she glanced tiredly up at Forest and Kenneth, who had begun arguing about what they should do now. 

"We need to find a way out," Kenneth said. Forest nodded.

"I say we all go and look around. There must be a back way out somewhere… or a phone or something that we can call the others on."

"We're in the middle of goddamn nowhere, Forest," Kenneth returned. "Like they'd really have phone lines out here. Do you even have any idea where we are?"

"Spencer Mansion."

They both turned and looked at her. Danielle was sitting on the bottom step of the staircase, gazing up at them.

"You mean the same Spencer who practically owns Raccoon City?" Enrico asked. Danielle nodded. 

"How couldn't you know? The Spencer family is as old as the city… even I knew that. Spencer is on the Board of Directors for Umbrella. This mansion," she went on, standing up and spreading her arms out as she walked into the center of the floor, "is older than me. Spencer Mansion was built sometime around 1965."

"1965? That's the year Raccoon became a city. It used to just be a little town. But in 1965 it went through a big boom and just shot up out of nowhere," Rebecca smiled. "I learnt that in History class."

They were quiet for a moment, and then Forest spoke up a little quietly, returning to their previous topic.

"Well, if this place belongs to a family like the Spencers, it must have something like a phone, or a CB or something. Let's just go and find it."

"As a group?" Kenneth shook his head. "We'd never get anywhere and we'd attract attention as a big group."

"But don't you think it'd be safer? You know, safety in numbers? Who cares if we spend ages in this place? People live here, so maybe we should find them and see if we can get some help."

"We don't even know if anyone still lives here," Danielle again lowered the tone. "It's too quiet."

"See?" Forest turned back to Kenneth. "Dani's right. Those dog things outside may have killed the people here. I'll bet they split up and hid in little places. It's gotta be safer to stick together."

"Look Forest. I'm not saying you aren't right. But you listen, alright? What can you hear? Nothing. What does that mean? There's nothing here. I say we split up and find either a way out or some sort of apparatus we can use to contact the outside."

"Well Richard's the radio genius, what about your hand-held?"

"It's only short range," he replied. "The one in the chopper could broadcast further… but the chopper's outside. If we could maybe find some sort of broadband radio, I may be able to rig it up to reach out further, but other than that I can't do a thing."

"Well that settles it. Let's stick together and find a radio."

"It's not the most effective way to go about this," Kenneth argued. "If we split up we'll cover all the rooms so much faster than if we stay together."

"I don't think it matters really," Enrico shrugged. "We're stuck until Alpha Team gets here anyway. Even if we do find a way out, what then? Do we hitch hike back to base? Do we walk? With those dogs running amok out there, we'd be lucky to make it five feet away from this place without ending up like Kevin and Dewey."

They all went silent. Forest and Kenneth looked at each other for a moment. Kenneth shook his head.

"Enrico's right, man. I mean, we split up or not and we still have to wait for the other guys. Let's just take a bit of a gander around together, huh?"

"I like that idea," Richard agreed. Rebecca nodded also. Danielle smiled.

"It's settled then. Where should we go first?"

"Well," Enrico turned to a huge set of double doors to the left of the stairs. "Let's try there first."


	5. 3: The First Encounter

Chapter 3: The First Encounter

Jill looked out the window of the chopper, with a pair of binoculars in her hand. Chris was using night vision goggles, and the others were looking out the windows. Brad was talking to someone, probably either Chief Irons or someone else from HQ. He seemed slightly agitated.

"Chris, haven't you found them yet?" he said tiredly.

"No Brad, not yet," Chris shook his head and continued to look out the window. Jill tapped him suddenly.

"Look, Chris!"

Jill pointed out the window at a pillar of smoke rising out of the trees a little way away. Chris pointed it out to Brad. The pilot turned the searchlight on it and they could see it was a crumpled helicopter. He quickly turned the chopper and flew towards it, landing in a clearing outside some sort of mansion. Joseph, Jill, Chris, Rachelle, Barry and Wesker got out of the helicopter and approached the smouldering wreck of Bravo Team's chopper. 

"I'll go take a look," Joseph offered, and stepped up into the wreck. Rachelle shivered and looked around.

"There's no one here."

"Maybe they went to wait in that mansion over there?" Jill suggested to them, and they shrugged. Wesker was panning a flashlight over some nearby bushes.

"Oh my God!" Joseph came hurtling out of the chopper, his hand to his mouth. He stopped and bent over, his head between his knees as the others rushed over to him. Rachelle gently patted his pack.

"What's up, Joe? What did you see?"

"Kevin," he rasped, panting. "Kevin's in there. Mauled! Covered in animal wounds!"

"Was there anyone else?" Wesker asked from where he was kicking through the grass, disturbingly nonplussed about the issue. Joseph shook his head, too shocked to notice his indifference.

"No," he replied. "No one. Nothing was left either. Like they'd packed up and gone. The radio was still there… but a whole heap of C4 was missing."

"The canisters?"

"Yeah. Something got him, I swear. Go and have a look for yourself."

Rachelle took a breath and stepped up into the chopper. Soon after, she reappeared, ashen-faced.

"He's right… Something's gone wrong. Where're the others?"

"Let's take a look around," Jill somberly suggested. "They may be… around."

"In utter black humor," Rachelle began morbidly, "so was Kevin."

"Stay tight," Wesker warned as they began to fan out into the brush. "We don't want anyone being picked off."

Rachelle sidled up near Joseph, waving her torch in an arc through the trees ahead.

"Wesker's acting way too cool about all this."

"It's his job," was the reply as he turned backwards and shone his light around through the grass. Rachelle furrowed her brow and notched her gun barrel over her wrist that held the torch.

"Maybe so, but he doesn't even seem to care."

"Wesker's not any good at showing emotion."

"Except anger, contempt and sarcasm," she returned disdainfully. Joseph chanced a laugh and then fell silent. Rachelle became alert as he whirred around in his tracks. She'd heard it as well. A low growl. Then nothing.

"Probably just a wolf," Rachelle started. Then it happened. A huge yammering form leapt out of the brush at her, but at the last moment Joseph slammed into her and sent her flying. Instead the beast went for him. Four of them. Dogs with flesh rotting from their very bones. One lone runt had seized her by the wrist, and she slammed her hand down on the back of its neck, snapping it. The dog fell away. But Joseph could not overpower his outnumbering attackers. They took Joseph down in second and he ceased to move, to scream. Jill had already emptied a clip into them. 

Rachelle jumped to her feet as one dog came running for Jill. It flew out of the air as it hit a bullet fired by Chris, who wasted little time in getting Jill to her feet and dragging her along behind him. Together they ran ahead of the dog to the mansion Brad had landed the chopper in front of. But he wasn't there anymore, and they saw him fly overhead as they ran.

"Where the hell does he think he's going?" Chris exclaimed and Rachelle looked up too.

"Bastard!" she cried out. "I'll kill him! I'll murder the shit!"

They staggered up the front steps of the mansion, praying that the doors were unlocked. Wesker reached them first and threw open the doors, holding them open as they all ran in. Barry was last through. Wesker slammed the heavy doors on the gaining snouts of the mutts, and there was silence.

Rebecca pushed open the door slowly, and slammed it shut again quickly. She stood with her back to the door, with a frightened look on her face. Danielle looked at her.

"What's wrong?"

Rebecca stood there for a moment, and shook her head clearingly.

"Oh, that's gross, there are all these creatures in there, they look like humans, but well, you take a look."

Enrico opened the door a crack, took a look inside, and quietly closed the door. 

"Whatever the hell those things are, they're really in the way. Girls, you hang back here with Forest. Kenneth, Richard, you and me'll take these freaks out."

They nodded and the three men disappeared through the door. Forest crossed his arms and looked around the dusty balcony.

"This is totally screwed," he muttered. Rebecca and Danielle agreed, listening to the gunshots from the next room. Danielle sighed.

"Sounds like they're having fun."

"You have a queer idea of fun," Forest smirked at her.

"Fun is where you're utterly enjoying yourself. Now I find venting my own anger and frustration on moving things fun."

Rebecca smiled. "At least we're not all alone now."

"You're right."

Forest turned a little, and as he moved, something jangled. Danielle looked him up and down, crossing her arms.

"You brought the C4."

"Yeah, so?"

"Why the hell did you bring the C4 into a place like this?"

"Thought we might need it."

"You're a dick," Danielle shook her head. "What happens if you get shot or if you take a death plunge, or if something stupid bites one of those canisters?"

"Well, it won't bite me again."

"I may understand your bringing them, but why the hell are you wearing them as a bullet belt?"

"Easy access," he replied, looking at the canisters. Danielle smacked the side of his head.

"Dickhead! Take the bloody things off!"

"And put them where?" he asked in reply.

"Leave them here," she answered and untied the top strap. He rolled his eyes and let her take the explosives.

"You're such a fuckhead Forest," she muttered and put them on a high shelf along the wall. She picked up a pretty dagger that was resting on the bottom shelf. She walked back over and cut the bottom strap. "These are more dangerous than you if you had half a goddamn brain."

After putting the second lot of C4 with the first, Danielle came back over to them. Forest didn't look in the least impressed.

"You can be a real bitch sometimes, Danielle."

"Look, if you think about it logically—"

Just as she was finishing, Enrico, Richard and Kenneth came back in. They were smiling.

"Road's clear," Kenneth grinned. Forest walked forward and put his hand on the door handle. But as he did, it moved. The door flew open. Lunging right at Forest from behind the door was a fierce zombie. It's fingers had grown claws and its skin had turned a deep crimson red, and it grabbed Forest and dragged him to the ground, burying its teeth in his shoulder. Forest's cries echoed in the empty hall as the others dragged at the powerful monster, trying to get it away from him. At first Forest's vest had withstood the monster's teeth, but it amended this by tearing the shoulder clear and tearing into him. Danielle sprang at it, grabbing the head and ripping up. The neck snapped back at an impossible angle and the creature fell limp. They pulled it away from their comrade, moaning in pain and blood thick on his shoulder. Enrico and Richard took an end each and lifted him up.

"There's a safe room downstairs through that door," Enrico motioned with his head to the open door swinging on its hinges. "Let's get him in there. Then you can take a look and see what you can do, okay Rebecca?"

The girl nodded and they ran down the stairs into the corridor below, past the other bodies of the monsters they'd already killed. Kenneth tried the door. It was locked. 

"It must've locked behind us…"

"Move," Danielle shoved him out of the way, and set her shoulder against the door, ramming into it with a fearsome strength.

"What are you doing?" Rebecca asked, as Danielle rammed the door again. She stopped for a moment and looked at her.

"Opening the door."

She gave it one more, and the latch splintered, the door flung open. Danielle waved her hand at the door, leading the way in. Inside were a large box, some shelves with serums and vaccines and medical supplies on them, and a bed upon which they laid the groaning Forest. Danielle inspected the broken latch, and straightened the wood on the door. Rebecca wasted no time in checking Forest's wounds.

"You're relentless, Danielle."

She looked up from the job she was doing of blocking the door. Enrico stood there, bearing a dark expression. Danielle shrugged. 

"I was taught to expect the unexpected and blow off its head when it comes. How's Forest?"

"He's been better. Rebecca's doing what she can."

"Help me with this?" she asked, motioning to the box. He nodded and helped her shove it in front of the busted door.

"You shouldn't be on the S.F.S. You should be in S.T.A.R.S."

Danielle smiled. "I'm fine where I am, Enrico. Trust me."

Forest cried out from over on the bed. Rebecca was doing her best to treat him. Enrico shook his head. 

"Let's just hope he'll be fine."

"Forest's good," Danielle assured. "I think he'll be fine."

"Do you think those monsters were people once?"

"I think it's obvious they were."

"The people who lived here?"

Danielle shrugged. "I guess it's possible. But I don't know how it might be that way. I'm praying that it's not a disease."

"So we don't catch it?"

"Well, what if Forest does?"

Enrico looked at him. "I never considered that. We should keep a close eye on him, Danielle."

"My thoughts exactly."

"I have an idea. Why don't a few of us keep searching the mansion and some of us stay here with Forest? We can't all stay here, we're sitting ducks."

"I'm staying," Danielle replied. "And Rebecca will need to as well. You Kenneth and Richard go."

"I'll leave Kenneth here as extra backup in case something happens. Richard and me will go. And hey," he lightly smacked her ear. She realised suddenly that he had in fact patted the earpiece of her headset radio, the one she'd forgotten she was wearing. "If you need us, call us up."

"Vice versa too," she replied with a nod and switched it on. Enrico turned to Richard.

"Aitken, come with me. O'Sullivan, stay here with Danielle and Rebecca. Watch them and keep a close eye on Speyer. We're going to see if we can find a radio, or some intelligent help that might be able to tell us what the hell is going on in this madhouse."

Richard soundlessly followed his captain out of the room. Danielle shoved the box back into place after they'd left. Kenneth shook his head.

"He was right after all, I guess," Kenneth admitted. "If we'd split up, we'd be easy targets. I should've made sure they were dead."

"It's not your fault," Danielle replied. "So don't get caught up on it."

She walked over and stood above Rebecca's shoulder as she finished dressing the wound. Forest looked up at her.

"You know… if I had've been wearing that C4, we would've gone bang," he laughed slightly. "But fuck almighty, I've never been bitten so hard. He took a whole friggin' chunk out of me."

"Just rest," Rebecca said. "We should be right where we are. For now at least."

"Hey, I heard you and Enrico talking," Forest looked up at Danielle again. "What you said about those things. Am I… am I going to turn into one of them?"

"I hope not," Danielle smiled, and added to keep him in good spirits, "Besides. If you did, you'd be the best looking zombie in the whole mansion."

He laughed. So did the other two.

"I'd have them all jealous, huh?"

"Heh, yeah. I'd let you eat me any day."

They erupted into laughter that they quickly silenced for the sake of secrecy. Forest grinned and looked away for a moment.

"Thanks Dani. I feel a lot better now. You sure do know how to cheer someone up."

"You're alright," she smiled. "The last thing we need is low spirits. Even if it does mean the necessity of risqué comments."

Danielle slumped against the door and sighed. Rebecca sat on the floor in a melancholy attitude, staring into space and sighing. Forest was sleeping off the pain of his injury thanks to a shot of morphine, and Kenneth was sitting on a desk fiddling with his gun.

They had been through the entire contents of the chest in the corner of the small room they had found temporary sanctuary in, but who knew how long that would last. Danielle sank to the floor, and banged her head against the wood. Rebecca looked up at her.

"Well, you were right, there certainly are more monsters. We probably would have stood more of a chance outside than in this house. At least there was only an amount of those mutts out there, there seems to be an endless supply of monsters in here."

Danielle nodded. "And to think that most of them were human. What happened here? The company wouldn't just let their scientists go to pot like this."

Rebecca shrugged. "I don't know. But I do know one thing, we can't stay here forever. By the way, what is this 'company'?"

"Umbrella. I said before, Spencer works for Umbrella. This place belongs to him. It's also used as a research facility. Look at all those pharmaceuticals. They're all made by Umbrella. It doesn't take much to put two and two together and work it out."

"So you think that Umbrella has something to do with this?"

"Must do. But as for what, I have no idea," she walked over to the bed and sat on the edge, resting a hand on Forest's forehead. "He has a fever. That's not good."

Rebecca came over to confirm what she'd said. Kenneth looked up too. Rebecca frowned.

"But why? He was only bitten, wasn't he? Forest," she shook him hard to wake him up. "Forest wake up. Forest. Forest."

After a moment he stirred and mumbled something inaudible. 

"Forest wake up," Danielle commanded, and he opened one eye.

"I feel sick…" his face was pale as a sheet, but his cheeks were flushed bright pink. He did look very sick. Sweat was thick on his forehead and his dark hair stuck to it.

"Damn, Forest you look like shit," Kenneth shook his head. He didn't answer, but groaned as Rebecca gave him a shot of something.

"It's a painkiller," she said. "It may help."

As she pulled the needle out he leaned over the side of the bed, throwing up. Danielle frowned and turned on her radio.

"Danielle to Enrico, over. Enrico, Richard, are you out there?"

The radio crackled in her ear. "This is Enrico, we hear you, over."

"Where are you? Over."

"In a corridor on the east side of the house. First floor. Are you still in the medical room? Over."

"Yeah, look, I don't know how important it is, but Forest's taken a turn for the worse. I think you should come take a look. Over."

"We're not medical officers, Danielle, Rebecca's there, she knows how—"

"I know Enrico," Danielle cut him off. "But one of your men is very, very sick. More than likely it has something to do with the bite."

There was silence for a long time on the other end.

"Leave him," Enrico eventually mumbled. "Take Rebecca and Kenneth and leave him there. He's dead already."

"I can't do that, Enrico."

"Listen to me, Danielle," he answered, almost inaudible beyond the static hiss of the radio. "We found some information. Those zombies… they're the effect of a virus that leaked out here. They become cannibalistic. The virus is transmitted through a few means, and one is a bite. Nausea, blackouts, fever… they're all symptoms. Either leave him when he does black out, or kill him. A shot through the head or intense trauma to the neck will be all you need. It's up to you. Do you want him to become one of those things? Because I know what I would do. And Forest Speyer is a man I respect as a colleague and friend. Trust me Danielle. He's better off being put out of his misery now."

"Is there no way to reverse it?" she asked in a subdued tone, aware that she now had all their eyes on her.

"Not one that we know of or can get a hold of in time to save him."

"I can't do it, Enrico… I… I don't have the courage to do that to a friend… even if it is for his sake."

"Then get Kenneth to do it."

"This isn't some responsibility that can be shirked!" Danielle cried. "I understand where you're getting at, but you don't have to be so cold about it!"

"I'm sorry," Enrico replied calmly. "But it's taking me all I can to not lose my composure too. Believe me Danielle, it's a big loss to me."

"Over and out," she mumbled quietly and turned off the radio. Rebecca and Kenneth were waiting to hear everything. She waved to them and called them into the far corner.

"What's going on?" Kenneth asked. "What did Enrico say?"

"He said… that Forest's going to turn into one of those things. They found out what went on here. They know what happened to all those people. They became zombies. And Forest is on his way to joining them."

"Isn't there a way to stop it?" Rebecca asked. Danielle shook her head. 

"Enrico gave us two choices. We can just leave him, or we can… kill him now."

Kenneth and Rebecca looked at each other then back at Danielle. Kenneth showed his gun. 

"He's hurtin' right? Forest's my friend, man. I'll do it."

"No, wait," Danielle stopped him. "Let me. Please Kenneth."

"Didn't you tell Enrico that you couldn't do it?"

"I… can," she shook her head. "I was a bitch to him before… I feel bad. Please Kenneth? Your gun?"

"Don't you have one?"

"It has an electric aftercharge enough to blow a hole in an elephant the width of Iron's waist."

Kenneth slowly handed her his gun. "I'm sorry this has to happen."

"I know. Will you and Rebecca wait outside?"

"Sure. Come on 'Becca."

They shoved the box out of the way and closed the door quietly. Danielle waited a moment then walked over. 

"Forest?"

He looked up, smoky eyed. "Dani? My sight's going fuzzy…. What the hell's happening to me?"

"Um… it's hard to explain it in a way that might make it seem… Forest, you're becoming one of those creatures. Enrico told me how it happens on the radio just before. There's no way to reverse it."

"I see… what else did he say?"

"There's no way to reverse it, but there is a way to stop it… and either way… you're going to die."

He struggled to sit up. "I don't want to end up that way," he reasoned, and nodded to Kenneth's gun. "I take it you were going to shoot me?"

"Unless you don't want me to."

"I want you to."

"Forest, sorry for being a bitch before."

"You're forgiven. I was a dick."

"See you on the other side?"

"Don't hurry," he smiled a charming smile that he was almost known for. "Is this Umbrella's fault?"

"I think so."

"Do me a favour… kill Spencer."

"You got it."

He grabbed her free hand in a strong grip and smiled, nodding resolutely. His palm was sweaty, but she didn't care, this was it.

"Okay, I'm ready. Do it."

"Just one more thing," she leaned forward and kissed him lightly. "Goodbye."

"Send my regards to Mister Spencer."

Danielle lifted the gun and held it to his head. He closed his eyes and she also looked away. And she pulled the trigger. The echo of the gunshot rang loud in the silent house. His hand went limp, and he dropped back to the bed. Forest was dead. Danielle stood up and wiped a tear from her eye. For the sheer sake of it, she pulled the bed-sheet over to cover him and then without looking back, left the room. Kenneth and Rebecca were standing outside, Kenneth with his arms crossed and Rebecca looking at the floor. Danielle silently handed Kenneth his gun.

"He alright now?" he asked. She nodded.

"It's what he wanted, too."

"That's good. As long as he's alright now."

"Let's not linger here," Danielle replied quietly, and they started walking, back up to the balcony above the dining room. "We need to meet Enrico and Richard."

"Where?"

"Hold on, I'll ask," she answered, willing to do anything to take her mind off what she'd just done. She adjusted the set. "Danielle to Enrico."

"Enrico to Danielle, what happened? You just signed off on me."

"I did it, Enrico. Forest is dead. It's what he wanted."

"I'm… sorry. We'll rendezvous in the main hall. We can discuss things there."

"Alright. Over and out," Danielle looked up at her two companions. "Enrico and Richard are on their way. They'll meet us in the main hall."

"Alright let's go," Kenneth said, and led the way. When they found themselves on the second floor banister of the main hall, Enrico and Richard were already there. They had been in a room just off it. Enrico's face showed that Forest's demise had struck a blow Danielle hadn't perceived over the radio. Richard was subdued also.

"Did he say anything?" was the first thing he said to her.

"I told him we'd get Umbrella back for this."

"And so we will then," Enrico nodded. "But we can't pause to mourn him yet… we have to find a way out of here. We've still had no luck finding a radio. Come on, Richard and I found a room we couldn't quite get into. Danielle, we may need your expertise with opening doors."

She nodded and they set off to the east side of the mansion. Enrico led them through a door into a dark hallway, and then into a musty one. After that into a small t-shaped hall with a cobwebbed door at the top of a set of stairs at the end. This one Enrico pointed to.

"Reckon you can take that one?"

"Anything to take my mind off things," she replied, and rammed the door. It was so old that the lock and several of the panels splintered from the force, and she literally stumbled into the attic room. Enrico grabbed her by the waist before she could go face-first into a pile of white dust. She managed a laugh.

"Piece of shit door, huh?"

"Heh, yeah."

Richard looked around. "I don't think we'll find a radio in here."

"Uh-uh," Kenneth agreed. Rebecca walked further into the room, and sneezed.

"This place is dustier than Grandma's attic."

A low hiss startled them to silence. A sliding sound, and a breeze. Kenneth walked over near Rebecca.

"I think we should get out of here."

"I think you're right."

Suddenly Richard screamed, fracturing the silence. He was sprawled on his back on the floor; blood oozing out of a huge wound on his arm. Looming above was a gargantuous snake, like an asp covered in pink boils. It hissed, venom dripping from its huge fangs. They started shooting at it, aiming to get it away from Richard. The reptile's attention was drawn, and as Danielle paused to charge an electric shot from her custom gun, a humming sounded, and then a single shot hit the snake and blood splattered, sparks crackling around. In rage and pain the creature disappeared through a hole in the roof. Together they lifted Richard and ran out into the dusty corridor, laying him down. Rebecca leaned over him.

"That snake had poison simply dripping off its teeth. But back in the room where we brought Forest, there were antivenins. I'm sure those serums will work."

Enrico stood up. "Danielle, Kenneth, if you would?"

They stood up, and wordlessly ran out of the room.

Kenneth laid a hand on the handle of the broken door. "I don't really wanna go in there."

"Come on, Kenneth, Richard needs that serum."

"Alright, I'll go in and grab it. You stay here."

"Kenneth," Danielle looked at him. "For the love of God don't touch him."

"I'll get the stuff and go, okay?"

"Alright."

Kenneth slipped through the door and disappeared. Danielle waited for him outside, glancing down at a zombie lying on the ground by some crates. Completely without reason, she strode over and shot it in the head. Just after she'd done it, Kenneth ran back out and quietly closed the door. He shook his head with a sigh.

"Just being in there gave me the willies. Let's go."

"No," she replied, looking at him. He stared. 

"What are you talking about?"

"You take the serum back to Richard, okay? I'm going to go by myself. I can't deal with this. First Kevin and Dewey, then Forest… besides. I heard a helicopter before. Maybe the Alpha team is here. Go by the main hall. They may be there."

"What about you?"

"I want to find out everything I can about this place and why it all happened. I promised Forest I'd get to the bottom of it for him."

"Was there something I overlooked between you both?" Kenneth asked suspiciously. Danielle smiled and shook her head.

"No. We were just good friends. But I tend to get emotional. And I always honour a friends' last request."

"Good on you. I'm glad it's you doing this for him. To let you in on a little secret, he really did like you. He was playing around to cover it. But hey, I feel better now it's in your hands," he reached out and clasped her hand in a determined resolution. "Good luck on your quest, Dani. See you at the end."

"If I end up with Forest, Dewey and Kevin… I'll see you there."

"I'll beat you there gorgeous," Kenneth joked. "Life's just too short these days."

"Is not," she joked back. "It's the longest goddamn thing you'll ever do!"

With that, they parted ways.

Danielle peered cautiously around the corner of the hallway, only to see that about five of the zombies were blocking the way. From where she was, she could get a clean, unobstructed shot at all five. In a few shots, she had them all down. As she walked past, a piece of paper on the twitching body of one of the zombies caught her eye. Picking it up and reading it, she gaped in horror. It read:

  .......The T-Virus experiments had been going according to plan. However, within this past week, several accidents have occurred that threaten our survival. No one has been permitted to leave the facility since the outbreak occurred. The monsters we have created; the Hunters, Cerberus dogs, Neptunes and B.O.W.s, some have escaped and are causing problems around the laboratory.

 So far, the only specimen that hasn't even threatened to escape is the Tyrant. All measures are being taken to ensure that this B.O.W. does NOT escape its specimen tank. Many of the scientists have been infected or already died. According to what I've been told, they get back up and walk as mindless, flesh-eating zombies.

 But I have discovered that I am infected. There is nothing that I can do to counteract the virus. I will lose consciousness in only a few more days they say. I don't want to become the living dead! I plan to finish this before then........

 .......Someone came to see me today. I didn't know him, and he didn't have any clearance. But I let him pass anyway when he offered me a vaccine to the virus. Where he got it don't know, only that it worked and I no longer stand a chance of re-infection. I think I recognised him. But I won't tell them. I'm opposing them now. I'll get back at them by releasing the Tyrant.......

Danielle dropped the paper on the ground, shaking her head.

"I can't believe it. This is horrible. They created the monsters on purpose?! I can't believe that Richard.....But wait...Richard was here. Oh God....I hope he's alright."

A sudden thought occurring to her, she picked it back up, reading on a little bit more until she found the author of the letter. Startled by her discovery, she checked the zombie's body, and was relieved to see that it wasn't who she thought it was.

"Obviously this guy must have found his letter and was on his way to report it when they got him. I hope Richard's alright. He didn't sound like he was in a good state of mind at the time."

Her radio beeped. Startled and assuming it would be Enrico to lecture her about running off, she turned it on.

"This is Brad. S.T.A.R.S. Alpha team, do you read? Alpha team, Bravo team, it doesn't matter. Just please, someone give me a sign."

"Danielle to Brad," she started quickly. "Can you hear me?"

"Danielle! Christ almighty, I was worried sick! Is anyone else with you?"

"No," she felt despair well up by the fact that she was alone. "I was with the rest of Bravo team until a little while ago."

"Dani, this is important. Where are they now?"

"Last I know I left Kenneth to take a serum to Enrico, Rebecca and Richard for a snakebite. Kevin and Dewey died before we got here…"

"What about Forest?"

"I'll… I'd rather not talk about Forest right now. It's a sore subject."

"Have you seen any of the Alpha team?"

"Not one of them."

"Dammit. Look, try and get into a clear area. I'll come and get you. If you see anyone on the way, grab them, alright?"

"You got it."

"Over and out."

"Danielle to Enrico," she tried. "Enrico, are you out there?"

She tired a few more times, but after a while the only reply she got was from Brad.

"I've tried the others too. I think their radio must be broken. Just try and get out of the house."

Danielle ran through the next few corridors, ducking away from the zombies. She didn't stop running until she found herself out in a garden path. There were dogs; the Cerberus dogs, on the other side of the low fence. She aimed her gun at the first one and shot it clean between the eyes. Another came running up the path towards her, and she shot it, sending it flying. It lay for a moment, before getting back up. She shot it again, and it stayed down, lying in a pool of its own blood. Climbing the small fence, she walked through the shrubs, and if it weren't for the fence blocking the way, she may have wandered right off the edge of a long drop to a concrete surface probably 15 or so feet below her.

Danielle kneeled down and looked over the edge. The wall had several small juts scattered down the side, and she concluded that she could scale it quite easily. Swinging herself carefully over the railing, she backed down the wall, anxiously feeling for the foot and handholds below her. About five feet from the bottom, she ran out of ledges and let go, dropping lightly to the ground. Tucking her hair behind her ear, she suddenly froze, and turned around slowly. Three Cerberus dogs had cornered her, and were slowly circling, lowering their heads and snarling menacingly. Danielle backed right up to wall. 

She could shoot them, but she could hear others in the background, and knew that they would be on top of her before she could draw her gun. Suddenly she heard something promising. Looking up, she saw the glow of a helicopter's searchlight over the top of the ledge she had come down from, and suddenly remembered the headset. She switched it on and adjusted it.

"Danielle to Brad! For god's sake can you hear me?"

"Danielle! Where are you?"

She looked up as the chopper appeared overhead. "Right below you. I'd recommend getting me out of here before I become dog chow!"

"Yeah, I see them. Hold on!"

The helicopter came in low to the ground, right overhead. As the helicopter came close enough, Danielle grabbed the skid, and it lifted off again, just as the frenzied mutts jumped for her. She could see them below, in wild excitement, jumping and snapping at the helicopter, even though it was very much out of their reach. Danielle pulled herself up into the chopper.

"Come up here, sit here."

Danielle slowly walked up and slumped into the co-pilot's seat. Brad put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Danielle nodded, resting her forehead in her hand.

"Except I couldn't find any of the others. I just hope they're alright."

Brad's expression was hard. "There's nothing you can do."

"You don't want to know what's going on down there," Danielle assured, shaking her head. "It's a nightmare."

"Try me."

"Umbrella, that big pharmaceutical company, created a virus called T-Virus. It turns humans into Bio-Weapons and zombies, dogs into hellhounds, and creates horrible mutated monsters. The whole building and surrounding area is infected. It's really a great big, disguised laboratory."

Brad looked at her, and threw his hand over the top of his head.

"Whoa, that just went right over my head. You mean that Umbrella made monsters that are running loose in that mansion?"

"And the surrounding forest."

"Hence the reports of queer-looking monsters, and groups of strange people killing and eating hikers and other Raccoon City civilians."

Danielle nodded. "You got it. Hey, why are you up here? Where's the rest of your team?"

Brad grinned sheepishly. "I sorta ditched them."

"You sorta what!?"

Brad quickly tried to cover himself. "Those dogs, if I were to have been killed, who would fly the chopper back?"

Danielle looked away. "You know, if I had any idea this was happening, I would have protested to coming here."

"So would I."

"But you don't understand," Danielle said, turning to him. "I chase Umbrella as a second occupation. A friend of mine runs a company that counteracts Umbrella's lethal experiments. We shut down Umbrella's Chicago lab, and I followed them here."

"I heard about the Chicago shutdown. It was all over the news. They said it was a terrorist attack."

"Umbrella are the terrorists."

Brad didn't say anything. The helicopter flew over the top of a small open area, and Danielle spotted a small building that wasn't on any of the mansion maps she had seen so far, and it was something that interested her. She had to get Brad to set down, but that seemed close to impossible. So she had to think fast and make something up.

"Brad! I see Rachelle!"

"What? Where?"

She pointed below. "She ducked in there. You'd better set down!"

Brad nodded. "Alright, but if it gets active, I'm taking off. You'll have to jump in."

Danielle nodded. Smooth, she thought to herself. She hadn't lost her touch. Brad set the chopper down in the middle of the cut off section of the courtyard. Danielle jumped out of the side door of the chopper and ran over to the mesh door of the small building, running inside, she found herself looking at a desk covered in files and papers on the T-Virus, and along the far wall were several small cages. 

All but one were empty and bloodstained, and in the only occupied cage, was a small kitten. On the door of the cage it said: T-092 'Smokey'. Undoing the lock, she removed the black and white cat from the cage. It mewed quietly and tried to lick her face. She didn't think it would be a good idea to let it, so she kept her face away and hugged the warm animal.

Leaving the small room, she looked over at Brad and gave him a look that told him how gullible he was. He glared back in return. But then Danielle was surprised by a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh, you found the asshole. Good. I want to kick his backside to the dawn of time."

Spinning around, she came face to face with a very bedraggled-looking Rachelle. Before Rachelle could say another word, she spied the cat in Danielle's arms.

"Oh my God! What an adorable kitty! You have to let me have it!"

Danielle shook her head quickly. "No way! She's mine!"

Rachelle put her hands on her hips as the cat sprang from Danielle's arms.

"Nah! I could so take better care of her."

The cat's pained mewing stopped the bickering pair. Looking over, they watched in horror as the cat grew suddenly larger, and as its skin split in a dozen places, a second head sprouting from its shoulders. It roared and snarled, blood and saliva dripping from its jaws. Rachelle and Danielle looked at each other.

"Ahh, on second thought, I'm a very busy person," Danielle said, grinning. Rachelle closed her eyes and smiled.

"No, it's okay, you can have the cat. I'm alright. Rich and I can hardly take care of ourselves, let alone a cat."

The chopper took off and began to circle above them.

"Sorry Dani, but I can't stay on the ground!" Brad spoke to Danielle through the headset. Danielle and Rachelle looked at each other, and ran in separate directions. Smokey didn't like this, and each head wanted to chase a different girl. The force of the two pulling in opposite directions caused the skin between the heads to split, exposing the bloodied flesh and muscle beneath. Danielle looked up. The helicopter was nowhere in sight, even though she could hear it quite clearly. Rachelle called her.

"Danielle! He's on the roof!"

Danielle turned to see that the chopper had landed on the roof of the small building. Jumping out of the cockpit, Brad ran out to the side door of the chopper. He slid open the door and started looking for something in the back. The split between the heads got bigger as the two heads fought for direction.

"Try and get the heads further apart!" Brad called, shouldering a heavy-looking rocket launcher. Rachelle and Danielle ran around to the sides of the beast, and its heads were almost at a complete 180-degree angle from each other. The rocket hit Smokey right between the two heads, blowing a huge channel through its body. Danielle stopped and sighed, sitting on the ground. She looked up as Brad jumped off the roof, still with the rocket launcher. He slowly approached the halved body of the giant, two-headed cat.

"Be careful Brad," Rachelle warned as he got close to it. Brad shrugged.

"It's dead, isn't that obvious?"

Danielle stood up. "Brad, come back from it. Who knows what it is."

As she spoke, the two halves shivered, and suddenly the form began to spurt blood and change shapes until the two halves had become two odd-looking creatures, which looked like mauled cats. They lay still for a moment, and suddenly, they both sprang up together, attacking like the Cerberus dogs. Danielle and Rachelle quickly pulled their weapons on the beasts, but risked hitting Brad, as they slowly circled him, their heads low, snarling nastily. Their claws clicked on the concrete, and a sickening mixture of blood and saliva dripped from their deformed jaws. Brad re-shouldered the rocket launcher, and prepared to fire at one of them. It sat still as he aimed at it. Danielle stepped forward, holding out a halting hand.

"No, it wants you to! If you shoot it, it will become two more!"

Brad realised this and took down the weapon from his shoulder. Rachelle waved him aside.

"Brad, get the hell down, we'll take care of them!"

She lifted her magnum and aimed it at one of the creatures. Danielle also lifted her weapon. The two women aimed and unleashed a volley of fire upon the two beasts. Brad ducked down and covered his head as the shots rang around him. The animals squealed and hissed, before retreating into the undergrowth, followed by several more shots. Rachelle walked briskly over to Brad and harshly lifted him to his feet by his arm, and shoved him hard.

"You prick! You left us out there to die, now Joseph's dead, Chris, Jill and Barry are missing, and Wesker is acting weird! And half of Bravo Team is dead, too!"

Danielle looked at her sharply. "Who have you counted so far?" she asked apprehensively.

"Richard, Kenneth, Forest. And Dewey."

Danielle looked to the side, clamping her eyes shut. "You... you found Forest I see."

Rachelle shook her head. "What happened to him? Did someone attack him? All I know is he was shot."

Danielle nodded slowly. "I left him in the room with all the vaccines and serums," she looked to the side and closed her eyes. "I shot him."

Rachelle stared. "You… you what?"

"I shot Forest."

Brad gaped. "He was one of your best friends!"

"I know," Danielle had a tear in her eye. "But I had to. And he wanted me to. He got attacked by one of the zombies with the red skin… he was okay at first… but he started to show those symptoms. The ones that are linked to the virus. So I put him out of his misery. He wanted me to do it."

"That must've been so hard," Brad shook his head. "Having to shoot a teammate."

"Oh it's not really that hard," Rachelle slammed her heel down on the concrete in front of him, scaring him. "I could shoot you right now and not give a toss."

"Hey! At least I didn't go back to Raccoon City and leave you all out here with _no _chance."

"Well I'm not getting in that helicopter without knowing who's coming back. I don't know where any of them have gone now. They left me by myself. What bastards."

"And it's my fault," Brad said, looking at the floor. "I shouldn't have up and left like that."

Rachelle turned back to him, and shoved him against the wall of the small building, grabbing his collar.

"I know!" she screamed at him. "I know it's your fault! They are my friends out there! If they don't come back, I'll never forgive you!"

Danielle ran over and pulled her away. "Rachelle!" she cried, slapping her across the face. "Get a grip! If we lose it now, they won't have a chance. We need to stay together, we can't make it alone. Do you understand? Do you understand!"

"I understand!" Rachelle screamed back at her. "I get it, alright! But who wouldn't lose it out here!"

Danielle nodded solemnly. Then she put a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Come on Rachelle, get in the helicopter."

Rachelle turned away. "No."

Danielle and Brad looked at her, shocked.

"What?" Brad asked quietly. Rachelle turned to face them.

"No," she said in a bold voice. "I'm not leaving until I find the others. Not till I find... him.... Until I find the truth."

Danielle nodded, and threw the Ivory at Rachelle's feet. She picked it up and cradled it in her hands for a moment, before looking up at Danielle in surprise.

"The Flashgun? Danielle, wh… what?"

Danielle nodded, and smiled. "I'd have gone with you any day, except I've been down here twice as long as you, and I'm at my wit's end. If I were to stay here, I wouldn't be able to be contended with. You'll need it more than I will up here in the sky."

Rachelle shook her head. "I can't take it Danielle, this is like, your best friend."

"So are you. That's exactly why I want you to take it."

"But, what if something happens to me down there?"

Danielle sighed, closing her eyes. "Trust me. Take the Ivory."

Rachelle nodded slowly, looking down at the gun in her hands. Then she looked up at her best friend.

"I'll take care of it, Danielle. And I'll bring it back to you at the end of the night, in one piece. I'll try not to stain it, or anything."

Danielle laughed. Then she waved goodbye and watched as Rachelle ran off down the path back to the courtyard. Then she turned back to Brad, and suddenly hugged him, crying. He sighed and put and his arm around her. After a few minutes of this, he softly pushed her away.

"Danielle, it'd be much safer in the chopper, come on. I'll give you a boost."

Danielle wiped her eyes, nodding. He put his hands around her waist and helped her to grab the ledge. She pulled herself up, and held out her hand to help him up. Brad climbed back into the helicopter, and Danielle got in the opposite door, and instantly broke down in tears again.

"Gee, she wasn't kidding when she said she was at her wit's end," Brad said to himself. He put his hand on her arm. She looked up at him.

"I can't take this," she whispered through her tears. Brad nodded.

"Don't worry about it, Dani. But, why are you crying?"

Danielle shook her head. "I can't help but think myself partially responsible for what happened to Bravo Team."

Brad almost choked. "What? You're not with Umbrella, are you? So why would you have anything to do with it?"

Danielle sighed. "Maybe Forest was right from the start. Maybe we should've stayed together and looked for some form of communication with the outside. But I had to go alone; I forgot what his view was. He didn't deserve to die that way. No one does. After I'd been such a bitch to him too."

"Sometimes Forest asked for it though."

"Yeah. Wearing C4 like a magazine belt. It pissed me off how careless he'd been. True, I did have a good point, but I could've been nicer to him about it."

"Things that happen like that tend to make you feel guilty. Don't worry. I'm sure he's forgiven you."

"And I abandoned the others. Enrico, he said I should've been in S.T.A.R.S., Richard and his snakebite… Kenneth with his macho way of keeping cool. Rebecca who was just so naive and innocent. I liked that girl a lot. She actually reminded me of myself as a rookie."

"You were meek and quiet once? What happened?"

Danielle forced a smile. "I met Rachelle."


	6. 4: The Deeper You Go

Chapter 4: The Deeper You Go...

The creaking of the rusted pipes and the occasional drip of a distant tap that hadn't been turned off properly made the musty, dank atmosphere in the underground a lot worse than it should have been. That damp, dusty smell that filled the stagnant air was too much for some, and it was no different for Jill. She turned the next corner slowly, the humidity in the passages was making her feel faint. She barely noticed the large boulder and the far end of the corridor. Stepping out into the middle of the wide passage, she looked both ways and kicked the wall with all the ferocity she could muster when she couldn't see a way out. 

Almost as soon as she returned her now throbbing foot to the soft ground, there was a creak from up the corridor that didn't sound like one of the old pipes. Looking up, she gasped as the boulder began to roll steadily towards her. Turning quickly, she dove into the alcove by the door and rolled out of the way seconds before she was crushed beneath the rumbling stone. It kept moving down the path, and with a loud crash, it slammed through the wall at the far end and hit the wall behind it, embedding itself in the soft earth. 

Poking her head around the corner and slowly standing up, she cautiously stepped forward and looked around the corner of the new passageway. At the end there was a set of heavy-looking, rusted doors. Sighing, she put her hand on the cold steel handle and pushed open the door. Stepping into the dank room, she looked down in disgust as her foot touched the sickly-looking mess on the floor. 

Covering the floor, the walls, the roof; the whole room in fact, was thick, stringy spider's web. Thick strands were strung across the doors on the far side, and every step she took across the floor filled the room with a wet crunch, but there was another sound that she could just hear over the top of the sound her footsteps made on the floor. A soft padding sound, coming from the far wall. But there was nothing there. She stepped over cautiously to look. The web was filmy here, and it seemed the wall was reflective behind it, as glinting back at her from behind the film was another pair of eyes. Or was it two? No it seemed more like four. 

She realised too late and sprang back from the wall just as the webbing net came down over her head, and a massive grey spider bounded out, pushing her to the ground underneath the heavy web. Jill struggled to free herself from the net that had enveloped her body, but the more she fought the sticky strands, the more persistently stuck to her skin they became. 

She went for her gun, but though her hand found the butt of her berretta, the web had stuck it in its holster. Though knowing that she was going to get even more tangled in the web doing so, she rolled far out of range of the spider's fangs and tried again for her gun.

But the spider was faster than she had figured, and she had barely begun to pull at the jammed gun when the spider was upon her again. She miraculously kicked it away and tried again, but the spider was once more up before she could make any progress, and it came at her, its fangs bared. It was preparing to sink its teeth into her side when there was a piercing squeal and a spray of green blood as the massive creature flew back, blood pouring from one of its eight eyes. 

Barely able to see, let alone breathe through the thick, suffocating web, Jill saw a figure come up alongside her and fire again. This time the spider hit the metal doors and as it fell, it tore down the web that blocked the door. The grey beast staggered drunkenly to its feet, but as another two shots hit it straight after, it quivered and sank to the ground, unmoving. Jill began to struggle against the webbing again, but stopped when she felt her rescuer grab her.

"Stop moving, will you!" the figure half laughed, half scolded. "You're just making it worse. Here, I'll get this off your face."

She closed her eyes as she felt the sticky film being pulled away from her face, and she could breathe again, even if it was still the same dusty air that she'd been breathing for the last half hour or so. Chris smiled and pulled at the rest of the webbing, freeing her arms. As soon as she was able to, Jill hugged him tightly.

"Oh, Chris! I thought I was done for!"

Chris laughed. "Yeah, yeah. Come on, let's get the rest of this crap off you."

She helped him pull the rest of the sticky mesh off, and rattled her hand to shake the last of it from her fingertips. Pulling at her gun, she made sure it wasn't still caught in the holster. Chris looked at her.

"Okay. Are we alright now?"

Jill dusted herself off and then nodded. Chris led the way around the spider and put a hand on the door handle. Just as Jill was passing it, the leg closest to her twitched, and she shrieked, bolting around behind Chris and through the doors without a second thought, and crashed right into a green-skinned Hunter; a queer, scaly monster with little to no neck. Beady, glowing eyes looked out of its squarish head, and very sharp claws adorned either hand. Jill didn't see it, and toppled headfirst over the top of it and falling on her back on the cold, damp floor. 

The dazed mutant wobbled for a bit while it regained its balance and raised its claw with an infuriated scream, driving it into the ground right where her head would have been if she hadn't moved just in time. Now even more furious, the creature swung out, but instead of hitting her with its claws, it hit her with the broad side of its hand and sent her reeling to the floor. Showing its intelligence, it used one clawed hand to pin her to the ground and raised the other at an angle, ready to drive it into the side of her face. 

Just as it plunged its claws towards her, a shot rang out and the Hunter missed its mark, but sent its two longest claws through the side of Jill's right arm and shoulder. She screamed with pain as the Hunter's dark blood sprayed across her face and chest. Seconds later the Hunter ripped its claws from where it had embedded them in the ground beneath her bleeding arm. She cried with pain again as it pulled itself free and spun to face Chris. 

With an aggrivated scream, it ran full pelt towards him and leapt into the air with its claw outstretched, but he ducked it and fired again, this time the bullet hitting the beast in the back of the neck, killing it instantly. Chris ran over to Jill who was now writhing in pain on the floor, her hand clamped over the two deep gashes in her arm. Blood was coursing from beneath her clenched hand and her uniform was stained with blood, both the Hunter's and hers. 

"This looks bad," he said, carefully pulling her hand away and examining the wounds. He tore the bottom from his shirt and wrapped it tightly around her arm. Jill gasped with the pain and gritted her teeth, trying not to make a sound. Chris had barely covered the injury when the white cloth was already turning dark red. He helped Jill to her feet.

"Hang on to me, alright? You look a little white. Come on, we'll see if we can't find something that might be a little better than just that cloth. I don't think it did any major damage, but just stick with me, alright? I'll keep an eye on you, you'll be fine."

"Thank you Chris," she replied quietly.

Rachelle poked her head around the corner. The room was dark red and so was her shirt. Sliding the empty clip out of her gun she quietly slipped a new one in, keeping her eyes forward and occasionally glancing behind her and at the ceiling. Somewhere in amongst all the steaming pipes and ticking machinery were the creatures keeping her bailed up in this hot room. Ahead of her was a small machine that looked a little like a video game. She crept forward to see what it was. There was a small flat screen with 'Insert Disk' written in green LCD lettering across it attacked to the black box, and a slot to put a disk. She rolled her eyes.

"Insert MO Disk for passcode. Jesus Christ, where the hell am I going to get one of those?"

Just as she spoke, she sensed a presence behind her. Turning around, she watched in horror as a big, black form lowered itself slowly from the grated ceiling, its long arms suspending it for a moment before it dropped down. It stood up to full height, just a little smaller than her. Its beady little eyes glittered as if it knew she was cornered.

She lifted her gun quickly and its head snapped to the side, its arm swinging up and knocking the weapon from her hand before she could pull the trigger. She yelped as it shot out the other arm, gripping her by the throat and lifting her off the ground. She tried to scream out, but she had no air left in her lungs and all that came out was a quiet squeak. She could see her gun, a dark silhouette on the grating behind the monster. It brought up its other hand and gripped her by the scalp, grabbing hold of her hair and preparing to pull. She closed her eyes. This was the end.

Suddenly a series of shots rang out, and on the third shot, the monster's head exploded in a repulsive shower of bone and brain. The arms fell limp and Rachelle crashed to the floor, rolling to the side painfully and looking up at her rescuer. She couldn't believe her eyes. 

Holding her gun shakily, and quivering as though absolutely terrified of what had just happened, Rebecca looked as though she was about to faint. Rachelle coughed and pushed herself arduously to her feet. Pressing a hand to her right hip, she limped forward and leaned on the wall.

"Shit. Jesus Christ."

Rebecca put away her gun and ran over, picking up Rachelle's weapon and handing it to her. She took it with a nod and winced as she took a step forward.

"Rachelle, are you alright?"

Rachelle waved her hand. "I'll be fine. Thanks Rebecca, I owe you one."

"No, it's alright," Rebecca said, shaking her head. "I couldn't let it kill you."

"You're shaking, Rebecca. Is it really that scary to shoot a dangerous monster from a distance when it can't even see you?"

Rebecca shook her head. "I was scared I would miss and hit you instead. Here. This is one of those disk thingies that you need to get the passcode."

Rachelle smiled. "Thanks again Rebecca."

She took the disk and pushed it into the slot, the machine beeped and the slip of paper came out. Rachelle took it and slipped it into her pocket. She nodded to Rebecca.

"Come on, we've gotta find a way out of this hell-hole."

"It's a what?"

"A Hunter."

"What's a Hunter?"

"That is! Are you sure you're not just doing this to get a rise out of me? Because if you are, now's not the time, nor place to do it."

"Do what?"

"Isn't that the thing that attacked us?"

"Yes it is."

"It's a lot more ugly up front than it is in the picture."

"Okay, next slide!"

"Shut up and be patient, I'm not finished with this one yet."

"Boring!" Rachelle called out to no one in particular, and held open Rebecca's First Aid pack. "Get to the good stuff! I wanna see them ripping people to pieces!"

"Rachelle!" Chris bellowed, turning to her and knocking the slide machine off the table at the same time. It cut out with a click. "Now look! You made me break the damn thing!"

"I made you break it?" Rachelle hollered back at him. "You're the clumsy oaf, Chris! Go back to the Air Force with the other AJ's."

"Come on guys, keep it down, we don't want to draw attention to ourselves," Jill cut in.

"What's an AJ?" Rebecca asked, looking up from where she was trying to stitch up Jill's arm. 

"An 'Army Jerk'. Something I had to put up with while I was in the service," Rachelle replied, picking up the projector from where it lay on the floor. She put it back on the table and plugged it back into the wall, casting a dark glance at Chris. "Dickhead," she muttered snidely.

"If you're all finished now, I want to look at more slides- Ow! Careful there, Rebecca!"

"Sorry Jill," Rebecca replied, not looking up. "But it's a bit difficult to fix a hole that goes right through somebody's arm, you know."

"Yeah, alright. Just be careful."

"I'm doing the best I can. You're just lucky that it didn't sever any arteries or anything like that."

Chris flicked the projector back on. The slides had somehow shifted back to the beginning. Chris quickly flicked past the title slide which said 'Umbrella Biological Weapon Report'. Rebecca glanced up at the first picture, a dog which looked like its flesh was rotting off its bones. The slide was titled 'Ma-39 Cerebus'.

"I remember. That's what attacked the helicopter outside. There's heaps of them running around."

"Yeah well, I haven't had the pleasure of running into this 'Neptune' thing. Don't think I want to. I've seen Jaws enough times to compensate," Rachelle cut in as Chris changed the slide. The comment got a little laugh out of the others. Chris flicked right past the Hunter and stopped at the next slide. There was no actual picture, only the silhouette of a creature with a big claw, that looked almost human. It was titled 'T-001 Tyrant'. Rachelle stood up slowly and looked at the text, scanning over it quickly.

"T? T was the letter on the tag of that cat that I was telling you about. I think that the really strong ones must have the letter T in their ID number. Would you agree?"

"Yeah. Looking at all this information.....Ultimate Bio-Weapon? Is that what this thing is supposed to be?" Chris asked. Rachelle shook her head and hit the switch to change the picture, the next slide was blank, but the one after had a photograph of the Research and Development staff. 

"I knew it. Look there. That's Wesker."

Sure enough, on the far right hand side of the photo wearing his infernal aviator shades and his slicked back blonde hair, was Wesker. Jill shook her head silently and flinched a moment later as Rebecca continued on her arm.

"There you go, Jill. That's the best I can do. Here, I'll cover it so it doesn't get infected or anything, but it shouldn't."

Jill smiled thankfully. "I appreciate it, Rebecca. Thanks a lot."

Chris looked around. "See anything in here that should be sussed out before we leave?"

"How about that video room over there?" Rebecca asked without looking up, a safety pin between her teeth as she finished bandaging Jill's arm. "That passcode reader might open it. There might be something useful in there."

"Like maybe a working radio?" Jill sneered, pulling the radio out of her pocket with her free hand and tossing it across the room. Chris caught it just before it hit the wall.

"Hey, careful! We need it to keep an ear out on Brad. We need to know if he's still gonna be there when we get out!"

"Dani's with him," Rachelle pointed out. "She was with him since before I ran into them in the courtyard."

"I was listening to their conversations over this radio. She was trying to contact Richard and Enrico a couple of times too," Jill put in. Chris smirked.

"Well, she's safe up in the sky now."

"She must've had a working radio," Jill said slowly, mocking desire. Rebecca looked up suddenly.

"Omigosh! She did too! She had a headset! I forgot all about it! Brad gave it to her just before we left Raccoon City!"

"Do you think Danielle and Brad may have been in on this?" Chris proposed thoughtfully. Rachelle shook her head.

"No, she probably just forgot. Danielle's good. She's clean. She's hated Umbrella for longer than I can remember. She'd never even take the time to listen to an employment proposal from them. She smack them in the mouth before they could finish saying 'Umbrella'."

"Okay then," Chris said, and walked over to the password reader on the wall, and started to punch in random numbers. Suddenly a wall slid aside, revealing the way into the video room. 

On a table in the little room, glinting in the light behind the column was a strange-looking black and silver key. Rachelle picked it up and flipped it in the palm of her hand.

"Alright. Let's see what we can do with this."

Hours passed, and once again, Brad tried to raise someone on the radio.

"Hello? This is Brad. I know you can't answer me. But if someone's down there, please. Just give me some sort of sign. I can't stay here for much longer. Running low on fuel. This is your last chance to get out of there. Hello? Can anyone out there hear me at all?"

Danielle shook her head and looked out the window at the helipad.

"Brad. Why don't you set down there?"

Brad looked down. "You crazy? Not after what happened last time I landed in a closed in area. I'll circle around for a while longer."

"How much fuel do you have left?"

Brad looked at the controls. "Well, give or take about five or ten minutes, but if you take out the time it takes to get back to town, which is about 15 to 20 minutes, we can circle for another 25 safely. And when we land in Raccoon, we'll probably be running on fumes."

Danielle shook her head and continued to look out the window.

"Surely there's some way to contact them."

"The radio doesn't work."

"What about my headset?"

"Their radio doesn't work. You should've given the headset to Rachelle."

Danielle frowned. He was right. They could circle for about 25 minutes, and there was no real way to find them. Danielle was growing more and more anxious as the time ticked by. She checked her watch. They had 10 minutes to get out. Suddenly a flare went off in the direction of the helipad. Brad turned the helicopter and flew towards it. Danielle sighed with relief when she saw the five people alive and well on the helipad. She looked up at Brad and smiled.

"Hardly any time to spare."

Brad raised his eyebrows in a gesture of agreement.

"Running on fumes."

Rachelle, covered in blood and feeling very depressed, set the flare down in the middle of the huge helipad. It burned brightly as it shot up into the air. She watched it fizzle out into the night sky before she turned back to the small group of ragged-looking survivors behind her. Jill, Chris, Barry and Rebecca stood there, looking very worse for wear. Too tired to stay on her feet a moment longer, Rachelle sank slowly to the cold concrete and leaned against the wall. She could hear the droning, dull beeping of the self-destruct alarms, and she wished that she could hear the blades of the chopper over the incessant alarm.

"You don't think they just left, do you?" Rebecca asked. Chris shook his head.

"Even if they were about to fall out of the sky, I have a feeling that Danielle wouldn't let Brad leave."

Rachelle didn't say anything, but strained to hear even the faintest sign that the chopper may be coming. So far, nothing. She almost gave up even trying when she heard something. Faintly, over the top of the repetitive alarms was the droning of another machine. It became swiftly louder, and she knew it was the helicopter. She smiled weakly.

"Looks like we're out of here."

Jill nodded. "I can hear the chopper now."

The helicopter shot out over the rim of the high wall and circled, the searchlight sweeping over them all as it slowed and came down towards the ground. Danielle slid open the side door and waved her hand.

"Come on! We're almost in the red with the fuel situation here! A couple more minutes and we'll be lucky to make it back to Raccoon City!"

They all climbed into the back, and sighed with relief. But just as they lifted off, the chopper jolted to one side, and everyone fell on top of each other with a mass yell. Jill dropped back onto Chris' shoulder, squirming in pain as she'd hit her arm on the metal frame of the wall. He grabbed her.

"You alright?"

"I hit my arm!"

"What was that?" Barry growled, struggling to see from where he was on the opposite side of the chopper. Rachelle was slammed against the side door. As she glanced out the window, she stared down in horror. There, with its blood-covered, clawed hand gripping the helicopter's skid, was a huge, grossly greyish-white monster. It was human-like in form, yet horribly disfigured, its insides practically on the outside and it was massive. Jill gasped.

"The Tyrant!"

Danielle turned around, remembering having read about the Tyrant somewhere in the mansion.

"What?"

Rachelle ran over and opened the door on the other side of the chopper.

"That ugly beast killed Wesker.... In a fashion that I'm sure he enjoyed!"

Jill, Barry and Rebecca couldn't help but smirk wryly, despite the situation. Rachelle jumped out the side door of the chopper and landed on the concrete helipad, within feet of the Tyrant's claws. The creature let go of the chopper's skid almost instantly, and the helicopter faltered a moment, before regaining its balance and flying higher. Rachelle pulled her magnum from its holster and began to fire relentlessly upon the Tyrant. No matter how many rounds she unloaded into it, it seemed as though it was invincible, and it got back up whenever it was knocked down. Danielle turned to Brad.

"Where's the rocket launcher you used on the 092?"

Brad thought a moment, and slapped his forehead. "Aww, damn! I left it back in the courtyard!"

"Well we can't exactly go back and get it!" Danielle cried, jumping from her seat and running to the back, looking through the arsenal in the rear. She came back with a shotgun and leaned out the front chopper door, doing up her belt to stop herself from falling out. She aimed carefully and shot at the Tyrant, the shotgun shells hitting it squarely, but hardly making a dent in its attack.

 Rachelle was running out of bullets at a rapid pace. The dull click from the trigger of her empty gun sent a wave of panic through her. She ran the full length of the helipad with the Tyrant following her at its slow pace. Rachelle searched herself for more rounds. Danielle was still firing, but suddenly her shots stopped too, and in a flash of realisation, Rachelle knew that she too had run out of ammo.

Suddenly her hand touched the butt of another gun. Drawing it from her pocket, she realised that she still had the Ivory; Danielle's personal weapon. She gaped at it for the moment, and grinned. Taking careful aim, she pushed down the charger and fired. The recoil was so great, that she had trouble handling it even with two hands, when Danielle only used one. She fired again, and noticed that the Tyrant was showing its fatigue. It was right upon her when she fired the last shot. 

The Tyrant fell back and hit the ground with a crash. Rachelle sank to the ground and tediously kicked its foot. It didn't move. The chopper came back down, and she got slowly to her feet, reaching up for the skid and hoisting herself back in. She sighed deeply, and handed Danielle her gun.

"You were right, I did need it more."

Danielle smiled, and reached over the back of the chair to take her gun.

"You didn't even use it until then, did you?"

Rachelle shook her head. "But I'm glad you gave it to me. Who knows what would have happened."

Danielle slid the reloader back on the gun and the empty clip fell out. Slipping a new one in, she put it back in its holster at her side. Brad turned the helicopter around and flew off quickly back towards town. Danielle looked at her in the mirror that was mounted on the controls.

"You found the others. Did you find your 'truth'?"

Rachelle looked away at the mansion they were leaving behind and shook her head.

"No, I didn't find my truth," The mansion lab suddenly went up in a huge explosion that shook the chopper itself. "My truth just went up in that mansion. Along with everything I believed in."

Danielle turned away, not wanting to admit that she had also lost similar things to what Rachelle had. But she looked up, out the windscreen at the glittering lights of Raccoon City in the early dawn as they flew towards it. 'We may have lost our truth,' she thought, 'but I haven't lost the thrill of the chase'. Danielle looked ahead with a frosty expression. 'In fact,' she thought, 'the chase just got even more interesting'. Brad looked at her.

"You moving on again now that you've done away with another lab?"

Rachelle looked up. "You're not working for Dr McDoughal, are you?"

Danielle shrugged. "Well...."

"Then why were you talking to Richard if you were?"

Danielle smiled. "In case you've forgotten.... Well, it's a long story. No, I'm not really working for him. But I do chase Umbrella and make life difficult for them."

"I still think that your job description sounds like that of a Bio-Counter field agent."

"And if I am? I'd rather be a field agent for Bio-Counter than a lackey for Umbrella," Rachelle's head snapped up and she was about to yell, but Danielle cut her off. "I'm sorry Shellie, I didn't mean it like that. You know I didn't mean it like that. It's just, McDoughal has asked a favour of me, and that is to close down any Umbrella lab I come across in my 'travels', by any means necessary."

Rachelle looked away. "Just like in Chicago."

Danielle looked up. "I'd rather forget what happened in Chicago, thanks Rachelle."

Brad turned to her, but didn't say anything. Danielle looked down at her hands.

"I don't know if I'm going anywhere just yet. I kind of like Raccoon City. It's quiet and nice, and I appreciate the people. They're not like New York, or Los Angeles, or Chicago. They're actual 'people'. Not druggies and rapists and sleaze bags. I think the only person I met in Chicago with a personality was Daionera O'Sullivan."

"Daionera?! She has about as much personality as a turd in a thermos!"

Danielle smiled. "Exactly. Now you get my meaning. Besides. I'm not about to go anywhere. If I do, I'm just speeding up the Crossover Theory."

Rebecca looked up. "What is this 'Crossover Theory'?"

"I'll tell you when you're older."

Rachelle shook her head. "No, come on mate. You've gotta tell us. It's not like we're gonna go spilling the beans to Umbrella."

"I can't say. But I can tell you this, if Umbrella were to find out the devastating effects of the Theory, the world of science, hell no the world itself would come crashing to its knees."

"We can keep a secret."

Danielle sighed and shook her head again. "I'll tell you someday, when you've seen the things I've seen and gone through the things I've had to. When you think with the same openness I've thought with for years now, then maybe I'll consider it."

Rachelle forced a smile. Some things never change. They all went quiet and didn't say another word for the rest of the flight.

It was over......or so they thought.

What happened to Rachelle in the laboratory set under the courtyard came out as a jumbled story, which hardly anyone got the idea of. Jill, Chris and Barry kept looking at each other and laughing quietly whenever Rachelle tried to express what she was trying to say. Brad and Danielle were confused so much, they had been talking to each other all the way back to Raccoon City about what really happened. Both had interpreted her tale in different ways, and constantly disagreed on elements of it. Rachelle thought it was funny. What she had been trying to say, was that she had barely made it alive through the underground, and when she had gotten to the laboratory, she was void of ammunition, and had forgotten about the Ivory. In the lab, she had run into Rebecca first, then Jill and Chris in the Visual Data room.

"I was wondering what they were doing in there," she had said, "But I assured myself that my way of thinking was very warped, so it wouldn't be the case."

After meeting them, she had run around like a chicken with its head cut off, 'like Brad would have', she had claimed with a smile. After an amount of mindless exploring, she had found herself trapped by Wesker, who had Barry on a choker chain by threatening his family. Then they had been attacked by a monster, a monster which Wesker called the 'Tyrant'. He had assumed that it would obey him.

"He said that the Tyrant was under his complete control," she said. Then she grinned wryly. "But he was wrong."

The Tyrant had advanced towards him instead of the S.T.A.R.S. members. As Wesker had turned to run, she explained, the Tyrant had rushed at him and swung upwards, shoving his massive claw up Wesker's backside. As Rachelle finished her sentence, they burst out laughing. Barry seemed a little apprehensive to talk about it.

"That's why I said that he would have enjoyed his death."

Rebecca nodded with a grin. "I didn't get caught. Did he die with a smile on his face?"

Everyone cracked up laughing again. Rachelle gave Rebecca a high-five.

"You go, girlfriend!"

"Hey Jill, what happened to your shoulder?" Barry asked suddenly. "I didn't get a chance to ask you."

"I tripped over a Hunter and it got a little pissed off at me."

"How the hell do you just 'trip over' a Hunter?" Danielle asked incredously. Chris laughed.

"She bolted through a door and didn't see it until it was about to plunge its claws through her head. Then she saw it."

Rachelle laughed, but soon faded into a sombre mood. She continued with a sad look on her face. She seemed a little unwilling to talk about the next subject, but she knew she had to anyway.

"Before I reached the lab, something happened. Something really bad. As I ran past a Hunter in the hallway, I stumbled and he ripped my pants, which would explain this." She pointed to a very long row of untidy stitching that ran up the entire left leg of her pants. "Anyway, I got past the Hunter and ran through the nearest door," she took a deep breath and her voice started to tremble slightly. Her voice showed her upset. "Anyway, it was a bedroom," her voice started to break, but she took a deep breath and continued. "I heard a gun being pointed at me, and I looked to see who it was. It was Richard, my husband."

She heard a sharp intake of breath from some of the other members. Rebecca spoke quietly.

"I didn't know you were married," she said. Rachelle smiled.

"Not many people did. Only my parents, Danielle, my husband of course, Forest and Richard knew I was married. Anyway, Rich was lying on the bed, bleeding badly. His side had been sliced off by the Hunter. I was just in time. I only got to spend the last couple of minutes with him before he died. That's why I was covered in blood. It wasn't mine, it was his."

Rachelle's voice choked up and she couldn't hold back the tears anymore. She turned to Jill beside her and cried on her shoulder. Jill put an arm around her. Then she looked up.

"I don't know about everything that happened to Rachelle down there, but you pretty much know the rest of the story."

Danielle turned to Brad, a disbelieving look on her face. He returned the look.

"Married? I would never have guessed," he said, with a surprised tone. Danielle smiled sarcastically.

"Well, there you go."


	7. 5:The Deeper You Get

Chapter 5: ....The Deeper You Get

Chief Irons double-checked to make sure that no one was coming into the office as he opened the secret door behind his desk. He walked inside and waited for the door to close before he went any further. Stepping into the old elevator, he waited until it reached the bottom floor. The corridor was dark and only lit by flaming torches. He walked casually down the corridor until he reached the door at the end. Pushing it open, he gave himself a start when he almost walked into a middle-aged man in a white lab coat as he walked in the door.

"Oh! Dr Birkin. I wasn't expecting you to be coming up here."

Dr Birkin shook his head, casually brushing his short brown hair back.

"I'm done down there for today. How about we talk in your office. This place is giving me the chills."

"Some of the effects of your research gives me the chills William," the Chief stated, showing him out the door. "But I suppose that's natural."

William was quiet for a moment as they approached the elevator. Chief Irons slid the metal door aside and followed William in.

"Well Irons, the G-Virus is nearing completion, but I'm getting a bad feeling from Umbrella. I feel that they may be planning to steal my research."

"We can't have that," Irons said, opening the door back into his office. "Would you like a drink?"

He nodded wordlessly and Chief Irons produced two glasses and a bottle of whisky from the cabinet by his desk. Pouring two, he handed one to William and put the bottle away. He sat down on one of the chairs in the center of the room. William sat opposite him.

"I have a request for you. I don't want anyone to be allowed into the sewers near the lab without proper clearance. No exceptions. Can you do that for me?"

"I suppose I could," Irons thought about it. "What's in it for me?"

"We'll add it to your next payment," William assured. "I don't want to take any chances. Annette will continue to be your contact. She will inform you when I feel that it's safe again. This will be our last meeting above ground. From now on we will either speak through Annette or meet in the lab."

"There's something I feel I should also bring to your attention, though you may already know. It's about the guinea pigs that were sent to the mansion."

"Oh. Them. S.T.A.R.S. and that troublesome Captain Lanza. We will have to deal with them ourselves, but we will be sure to make it look accidental. Who were they again?"

"Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield, Rebecca Chambers, Rachelle McDermott, Barry Burton, Brad Vickers and Danielle Lanza."

"Good. Speak to Annette and she'll arrange something 'interesting' for them."

Chief Irons laughed. "The precinct will certainly be rather quiet without them all around."

Just outside the office, someone was listening in to the conversation. The redheaded secretary grimaced and sneaked away. When she was away from the door, she shook her head.

"Perhaps I should warn them out....."

Danielle stood in front of the shelves by the door in the library, looking through the files on Umbrella. She was standing there silently reading when suddenly the double doors opened and a blonde woman walked in, and tried to step past her quietly. Danielle kept her head down but followed her with her eyes. She looked familiar.

"Excuse me. Are you lost? You don't look like you're from around here."

She froze with a start and after a moment, turned to look at her. The woman looked in about her late twenties, early thirties, and had shoulder-length blonde hair. She glanced around nervously and shook her head.

"No, I'm right thank you."

"You don't look right to me."

She sighed and looked around. "Maybe you can help. I'm looking for the S.F.S. office."

"You don't wanna look at them. They're a bunch of sorry lowlives and even I have no time for them. That's why I'm up here, and not down there in my office where I should be."

"Are you Captain Lanza?"

"Now I really know you're not from around here. Everyone knows me. Yeah, I'm Danielle Lanza."

"You're the person I was looking for then."

"Looks like you're not lost anymore, hey? What's up?"

She extended her hand. "I'm Annette. Chief Irons' new secretary. He wanted me to give you this." She handed her a small sheet of white paper with six names on it. "He said that anyone in your unit not on that list is in the gutter as of whenever you decide to do it."

"Ah-hah. This must be the wonderful final list of who I'm not going to fire today. Thank you very much, I'm going to enjoy this a lot."

She walked out of the library briskly. Annette watched her go and crossed her arms.

"So that's the legendary Captain Lanza? Maybe we should take care of her first."

Danielle sat in her office, contemplating what was about to happen to the S.F.S. with an evil grin. She clamped her hands together and placed them on the table. For a moment, she actually considered not doing what she was about to do, but all the same, if she didn't, someone else was definitely going to do it. She scrolled slowly down the very small list of six names on the piece of paper in front of her and nodded. Irons had made the right choice with these people. She looked up and smiled as six people walked into the office. Brad, Barry, Rachelle, Jill, Chris and Rebecca stood in front of her desk.

"Oh please. Sit down. My God, every time I walk into your office I take it upon myself to sit on the tables and everything."

They grinned and found themselves somewhere to sit. Rebecca looked out of the door at the S.F.S. officers in the room outside.

"They make themselves look like they're busy."

Danielle nodded slowly, standing up. "Operative word, or words, there is 'look like'. They're really running around doing nothing, talking about the weekend past, and such. That sort of activity, I can't stand it. They never do their work. Except for a select few who actually do their jobs properly, as well as the jobs of about 20 co-workers. That's why I'm going to have so much fun doing what I'm about to do."

It was September the 1st. Danielle had been putting up with the incompetence of her squad for several months, and grew more disgusted with them by the day. 

"Time to get this over with. Let's go," she sighed and pushed herself to her feet. She walked out of the office, followed by the others. At the door to the outside hall, she turned back to them. "Classroom in 5 minutes!"

Then she walked out.

The entire S.F.S. sat on the green chairs set in the classroom on the 1st floor. Not one had a clue about why they were there. On the side sat the six remaining S.T.A.R.S. members. Danielle appeared out of a room at the back, her little piece of paper in hand, and stood at the small podium in front of the blackboard.

"I suppose you're wondering why I would even bother talking to you. It seems that no matter how much I tell you to, and explain how to do your jobs, you either don't listen or don't care. So I began to wonder why you're on our payroll if you never do your job. Can anyone tell me why that may be so?" No one said a thing. Danielle grinned slyly. "To make this easier on everyone, especially myself, if your name is not; Zoë Lawrence, Jennifer Lowry, Thomas Jackson, Richard Hayes, Maxwell Biggs or Dayna Kadenomi.... You're fired."

The last two words she said bluntly, and seemed to enjoy saying them. There was a sudden uproar in the room. Danielle yelled over the top of them all.

"And everyone else whose name wasn't mentioned, I will be expecting your desks to be cleared and your drawers empty by tomorrow morning."

Jason, sitting in the front row stood up. "You can't just fire us, Captain Lanza. Only Chief Irons has the authority!"

Danielle looked at him smugly. "Who do you think I got the authority from?" she teased. They suddenly hushed. When they learned that it was the chief himself who had ordered their laying off, they had to think about it. Jason looked around.

"How come none of the girls got laid off?"

Danielle shrugged. "Chief Irons comprised the list. It was basically he who told me who should stay. When it all comes down to it Jason, the new team consists of three women, three men plus myself, the captain." Jason began to object again, but Danielle stopped him. "Not another word, or I'll have your last pay-cheque cancelled. You can take us to court if you like and try to claim unfair dismissal-"

"This screams unfair dismissal!" Jason interjected. Danielle shook her head and continued.

"You can do what you like to try to claim unfair dismissal, except we have evidence that justifies the firing of close to all S.F.S. members. You may have forgotten that every meeting has been recorded by Chief Irons, and he can dig up any and every one, as well as security tapes which clearly show you all slacking off. S.F.S, dismissed. And not another word."

The six members who had survived Danielle's onslaught approached her and the S.T.A.R.S. members as the others left the room. Zoë pointed over her shoulder at the former members of the S.F.S.

"What's the deal, captain?"

Danielle sighed. "You must have noticed that you guys were doing your work plus all theirs?"

Dayna, young with straight black hair and oriental features agreed. "Yes," she began in her distinct Asian accent, "They sit and do nothing all day, and we are left to do their work."

Danielle nodded. "They were a burden for the precinct, so Chief Irons had me fire them. We kept you six on, because we have recognised your capabilities as good officers."

They nodded and, talking amongst themselves, left the now quiet room. Jill looked at Danielle.

"You know, that was harsh."

Danielle shrugged. "I've been wanting to do that since I first laid eyes on the sorry bunch."

Rachelle nodded slowly. "You were so blunt."

"I know. But at least our S.F.S. is now functioning properly," she replied, smirking. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Elliot and David watched their captain apprehensively as she went around to certain members and spoke with them. Elliot turned to David and motioned to her.

"What's she doing?"

David shrugged, turning away. "Who knows. Probably laying into them one last time."

"Elliot Edward and David Ford......."

Elliot jumped when he heard Danielle call his name. He turned around to face her, and she handed him and David an envelope.

"Guys, I'm sorry I had to kick you out of the S.F.S, but think yourselves lucky. Because I liked you both, I managed to save your asses, and you still belong to this precinct. Just not the S.F.S."

Elliot and David grinned. "Let me guess. Jason can just-"

"O'Connor? I did say I'd see him in hell, didn't I? Or wasn't it him?"

Elliot laughed. "Yeah. Thanks captain. I guess we owe you, huh?"

Danielle grinned. "Just do me a favour. Turn yourselves over a new leaf and make good waves. Irons does notice, you know."

"Really?" David asked sarcastically. "And I always thought he was a callous bastard."

"Oh, he is," Danielle explained. "Your stuff, just relocate it to the western office. That's where you are now."

Elliot passively saluted her and picked up a cardboard box. Danielle started to walk off, but turned around slowly.

"Oh, and if you see O'Connor on the way out, rub it in for me, will you?"

"Come with me."

Rachelle and Jill looked up. Jill looked blank.

"Come with you where?"

Danielle walked to the door. "To get some lunch. I'm going to pick up something from Kendo, but on the way back I'm going to Emmy's. Besides. There's nothing worth doing around here anyway."

They shrugged and followed her out. When they got into the lobby, Danielle suddenly stopped them. She pointed towards the reception desk.

"That woman. She's supposedly Chief Irons' new secretary but I've seen her somewhere before and it wasn't in an office."

Jill looked up at the blonde woman who was talking to the secretary at the desk.

"She approached me the other day. She seems nice enough."

"That's funny," Rachelle mused. "She's spoken to me too."

Danielle shook her head. "I know I've seen her somewhere before, but I can't remember where....."

"Her name's Annette, right?" Rachelle asked. Jill nodded.

"Hey, I got an idea. Why don't we ask her to come with us. Then we can suss her out."

Danielle nodded. "Okay. We'll go with that."

They walked up to Annette, who turned around with a start as they approached.

"Oh, hello."

Jill smiled. "Made any friends yet, Annette? Do you want to come with us for lunch at all?"

She looked perplexed. Rachelle laughed. 

"What Jill's trying to say is welcome to the precinct and we'd like to get to know you."

Danielle kept silent, her arms crossed and a thoughtful but hardened look on her face. Annette's gaze turned to her. They locked eyes for a moment.

"I don't know......" Annette began, an uneasy flicker shooting through her eyes. Danielle raised an eyebrow.

"Annette Birkin..." her uneasiness had struck a chord in Danielle's memory. She'd seen the same anxious flash before. She looked startled. 

"Yes.... How do you know that?"

"I know you from somewhere. I can't quite place it, but I do know you."

Annette glanced away uneasily. Jill gave Danielle a light whack on the back.

"Dani, be nice."

"Yeah. Bad dog, Dani. Bad dog," Rachelle scolded with a laugh. Danielle grinned and turned to Annette.

"No worries. Come on. You look like you don't get out much. It'll do you good."

Annette hesitantly agreed. Jill smiled.

"Don't worry about her, she's a real softie. She acts tough but she won't really snap you up for dinner."

Annette managed a laugh. "I'll believe that when I see it."

Danielle ran out the door. "Hey! I'll meet you at Emmy's, okay?"

Annette watched her. "Where's she going?"

Rachelle shrugged as they walked out the door. "To pick up something from Kendo. Knowing her, she'll still be at Emmy's before us. Lead-foot speed freak that she is."

"What's she driving?"

There was the sound of a loud engine sputtering to life and suddenly a blue and white motorcycle swerved out of the parking lot down the side of the police station. It pulled up at the gate.

"I'll see you there. Later!" Danielle chirped, pulling her helmet on. Rachelle laughed and waved as she sped down Ennerdale Road, disappearing around the corner up Flower Street towards Kendo. Jill shook her head.

"She refuses to drive a car because they take up too much space. So she got a motorbike instead. Come on. We've still gotta try and beat her there."

Emmy's was quiet as usual and just as Jill had said, Danielle was there first. She grinned as they sat down. 

"Ahh, the brilliance of a tiny and maneuverable vehicle. Though I didn't beat you by much."

Rachelle reached forward and snatched the menu out of Danielle's hand.

"You don't need that, you can probably read it from memory."

Jill sighed. "I'm just gonna have what I'd normally have."

"Hot chips and a caramel milkshake.....you're a dietitian's dream Jill Valentine," Danielle said, rolling her eyes. Jill leaned forward on her elbow and pointed at her.

"You're no better, Danielle Lanza."

"Well at least I don't drink full cream milk."

Annette looked up. "Why's that?"

"Makes me sick."

"Like half the people in the RPD," Rachelle laughed. 

"Yourself included," Danielle bit back at her. Rachelle shrugged. 

"Well sweets aren't good for dogs, now are they?"

"Don't push your luck," she said. Danielle turned to Annette. "So what were you doing before you came to the RPD?"

"I was an office assistant in Chicago when I lost my job to someone who slept their way into my position."

"Must've been a bloody good position."

"It was. But that's in the past now."

Danielle looked at her, still suspicious. Then she shrugged and turned away as the waitress approached. She smiled.

"Hey girls! Having a good day today?"

"As always Beccy," Jill chirped. Beccy smiled.

"So what'll it be today?"

"The usual," Rachelle sighed. Beccy laughed.

"Hot chips and milkshakes and no normal milk for the Captain," she said, glancing down at Danielle. Beccy turned to Annette. "What about you?"

Annette shrugged. Jill leaned forward.

"The same."

Beccy nodded and walked off. Annette smiled.

"You're obviously in here often."

"Every day. It's sad I know, but that's the way we are."

"Hmmm. Interesting," she said to herself.

Rachelle sat on the park bench watching the kids play with the fountain gears. She smiled as they put in the different patterns and made the water come out of the spouts differently each time. Rachelle thought about what they might say if they put in the combination that drained the pool. The kids were laughing and some were floating little plastic and paper boats in the pool. It was a small-scale activity compared to what was going on in the lake near the other side of the park where they were having the annual model boat race finals.

"Kids. You love to sit and watch them play," she said to herself, "And they're so adorable-"

"Then they grow up into bitches like yourself and make our world hell."

Rachelle looked up sharply at whoever it was that had the nerve to badmouth her on such a beautiful day as this, and was met with the image of a tall woman with curly blonde hair. She was dressed in a navy blue short skirt and business jacket over a white blouse and was wearing black high heels. She reminded Rachelle of one of those girls who even tried to throw up the air they breathed. The force required Rachelle to be thin and in shape, but she could never see herself looking like Daionera O'Sullivan who had the audacity to approach Rachelle, knowing the hatred she possessed for her.

"O'Sullivan. What a surprise. I never would have dreamed you'd have the nerve to actually approach me. What's been going on, huh? Lose your virginity again to shed that extra little bit of weight?"

"No actually, still 50."

"In your bra maybe."

Daionera looked at her smugly. "What about yourself, McDermott? Still sleeping with the enemy, I presume?"

"Fidler actually, Dawn. And Richard was not the enemy."

Daionera shrugged and paced a bit in front of Rachelle, her high heels clicking on the pavement.

"At least not anymore, according to what I've heard."

Rachelle sprang up and grabbed her by the collar, startling her. "What do you mean by that, you bitch?" she snarled. "Because if you mean what I think, you'd better fucking take that back right now before I belt you into a bloody pulp."

Daionera shoved her away and dusted herself off. "Humph. You know exactly what I mean. Umbrella sends its condolences."

Rachelle made a dive for Daionera, but she sidestepped her.

"You traitor," Rachelle accused. "You work for them, don't you!"

"How does that make me a traitor? And to whom?"

"You're a traitor to the human race. Umbrella is evil, to put it simply. And you're just another stupid slut who works for them."

By now, the kids had turned their attention to the two grown women arguing nearby. Daionera swung her fist, striking Rachelle in the jaw.

"Bitch!"

Rachelle ran for her, punching her back. They continued to hit each other as one of the little girls ran off. The little girl ran through the gate and up to the nearest person she recognised. Danielle turned around as she felt a tug at her coat.

"Excuse me Miss Police-person, but there's two ladies fighting over there. They said some nasty stuff to each other then started hitting each other."

Danielle looked through the gate and sighed in exasperation when she recognised Rachelle.

"Oh dear. I guess I'd better break that up. Come on Jill."

She tapped the shoulder of the woman next to her, looking out at the boat race. Jill turned around and followed. Danielle burst through the gate and grabbed Rachelle on one side, while Jill grabbed Daionera. Danielle slapped Rachelle across the face to get her attention. Rachelle went to hit her back, but she ducked.

"Rachelle Fidler! I'm on duty for Christ's sake! You hit me and I have to take you in! Calm down!"

Rachelle suddenly snapped to her senses and nodded, wiping blood away from her nose. Daionera also wiped blood from her nose and mouth, an obvious black eye swelling up as well. Jill let go of Daionera as Danielle released Rachelle.

"Now. What happened."

"She swung first, officers. I was merely defending myself," Daionera said, trying to regain her posh composure.

"You're full of it!" Rachelle spat, fighting every urge to hit her again. "You bloody swung first, you lying bitch!"

Danielle looked at Daionera. "Well, well. Who have we here. If it isn't Daionera O'Sullivan herself. I'm not being biased, but I know you, and I'd be more inclined to believe Rachelle. Even if she did hit you first, I'm sure you were asking for it."

"Damn right," Rachelle said, taking the tissue that Danielle offered her and holding it to her bleeding nose. "I was just sitting here and she comes strutting up with her Armani suit and high heels and starts making comments about Richard!"

Danielle looked up at Daionera. "You know, O'Sullivan, I can pull you in for assaulting a police officer."

Daionera flicked her hair over her shoulder. "I'm surprised she made it as an officer. I believe you could take me in Captain, however how do you know there aren't more Umbrella operatives in the force? I would get away unscathed and you and your friends would be charged instead for a false charge, or taking me in without a warrant."

"You don't need a warrant for a field arrest Daionera, I think you need to go back to academy and read into the law a bit more."

Daionera shrugged. "Not my problem. I think you should be the ones worried. Not me."

Danielle gritted her teeth and looked at Jill. Jill drew a pair of handcuffs and clapped them around Daionera's wrists.

"Daionera O'Sullivan, you're under arrest for physically and verbally assaulting a police officer and attempting to threaten an on-duty officer. Anything you say and do can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney and may have a lawyer present during questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, then one will be provided for you."

Danielle turned to Rachelle. "Look, Shellie, this is the last time I can get your ass out of trouble, okay? Next time it happens, I'll have to bring you in too."

Rachelle nodded. "Thanks, Dani."

"Annette!"

She turned and looked at the door as Chief Irons came bursting through it, an intensely aggrivated look on his face. She had the urge to cower away, but she wasn't going to weaken to him.

"Yes Chief?"

He looked at her sharply. "I want that secretary downstairs dealt with! Lanza's onto us. She's already asking awkward questions. I think she knows."

"If that's so, then shouldn't we be dealing with Danielle, not the secretary?"

"The secretary is the one I think told her. Look at this."

He handed her a blue diary and pointed to the last page. She scanned it quickly and closed it.

"I suppose you want me to handle that."

"I know that they've taken a liking to you. But Lanza's still very suspicious."

"Tell me something I don't know. I get uneasy around her. She says she knows me from somewhere but can't quite remember. I have I feeling I've met her before too, but I'm a bit blank."

"There were a few rumours going around when she first came here from Chicago that she had something to do with the bombing. Apparently she gave that Mafia guy everything he needed to know."

"That's probably where I've met her. If she remembers me before we can do something about her, it's all over. She'll expose everything."

Irons nodded. "That's why I want something done about this secretary. You know what people say about memories. It only takes one little tiny jolt for everything to just come screaming back."

Annette stood up. "I'll see what I can do about the secretary. You're going to have to deal with Lanza. She's far too good for me," she stopped suddenly and turned to him. "Something else you may like to know, they're going to Europe to confront the HQ."

Irons yelled with fury and belted the typewriter off the desk in a rage. Annette left the room with a laugh. As soon as she was out the door she sobered up and shuddered, looking along the balcony. Shaking her head, she began to walk along the balcony when she heard the door open behind her. Quickening her pace, she found herself pulled to a halt when a strong hand grabbed her from behind. She almost fell back with a startled cry, but was pushed quickly back to her feet. She turned around to see that it was Danielle who had pulled her up. She didn't look happy. For a split second Annette was sure she had remembered her, but she didn't say anything insinuating that she had.

"Annette.... I have an important question for you."

"Yes...." she began slowly, "What is it?"

"A few months back, in that whole Umbrella thing in the Arklays, there was something I read which mentioned the name William Birkin. Do you know anything about that at all?"

Annette had to think fast. Danielle was famous for seeing right through a person's lies.

"No.... The only relative I have is a sister... I don't have any brothers or cousins or anything that have to do with Umbrella.... At least not as far as I know...."

She didn't look like she bought it, but she nodded anyway. 

"Fair enough.... Just a thought, that's all. Something else. Why did you walk faster when you heard me coming?"

"I thought you were Chief Irons."

Danielle covered her mouth and burst out in laughter, continuing along the balcony. Annette narrowed her eyes and shook her head.

"This is becoming incredibly tedious. Something has to be done about that woman."

It was now the 25th of September. And all was not well. Reports had been coming in of people developing odd illnesses. Now the whole town was becoming overrun. Jill estimated it would be maybe a little less than five days before the entire town was taken over. The doctors had named the illness the 'cannibal disease', as anyone infected developed a lust for human flesh. 

The S.F.S. and S.T.A.R.S. were holding a small meeting in the S.T.A.R.S. office about this new development. However, there weren't many there. Richard, Max and Dayna had come down with symptoms of this illness and were at the hospital, Rebecca had left for somewhere they didn't know about, Chris and Barry had gone ahead of Jill to Europe, to confront Umbrella directly at the main HQ. 

Danielle sat on a chair for once, telling them about what had happened in the mansion lab. Jill, Brad and Rachelle added their own little bits and pieces in, from their own experiences. The S.F.S. members were listening, gaping at some of the outrageous things the others said really happened. Jill shivered as she walked out the door with the others. Danielle turned to the S.F.S.

"Guys, listen. Do yourselves a favour and leave town. Think of it as an order. Because I'm telling you to leave town."

Thomas, Jennifer and Zoë all nodded, and walked away. Jill turned to them.

"I'm leaving town, too. Take your own advice Danielle, and get out of here."

Danielle nodded. "Already ahead of you on that one, Rachelle and I have somewhere to go."

Brad shrugged. "I'll wander around till I find a purpose."

_(Ooohhhh…. What's going to happen now? _

_Is Danielle spot on in her assessment of this new situation… or is she overreacting? _

_And what about this new and mysterious Annette?___

_All these answers and more in Chapter 6: The Ball Drops…)_


	8. 6: The Ball Drops

Chapter 6: And The Ball Drops

Jill approached the R.P.D. station. As she walked towards the steps, the gates creaked open slightly. She spun to see Brad behind her. He limped forward, almost bent double. His uniform was blood-covered and torn, and he was in worse condition than when she had seen him barely fifteen minutes earlier.

"Jill... Jill!"

Jill turned fully and took two steps toward him. "Brad?"

"We've got a-" before he could finish, a monstrous form crashed down in front of him. Brad cried out in fright, and ran as fast as he could away from it, but the creature was faster. This monster was the Nemesis. It had but one thing on its mind, and would not rest until it had fulfilled this. To destroy all S.T.A.R.S. members. Bearing down on him and cornering him, Brad couldn't escape the Nemesis.

Nemesis lifted him up roughly under the chin, and held its other deformed hand in front of Brad's terror-filled face, a purple, slimy tentacle writhing around, protruding from below its wrist. Jill couldn't do a thing without hitting Brad. Suddenly there was a low hum, and the Nemesis was hit by some sort of blast. 

It groaned and took a step back, turning to face its attacker, Brad still held in its iron grip. Glaring at it from behind the barrel of her fully loaded Flashgun, Danielle recharged the weapon and aimed again. Smarter than that, Nemesis shifted its position, and prepared to continue its business with Brad. Danielle had no intentions of letting the monster get its way.

Drawing a very large knife from her boot, she ran at the Nemesis, and jumped into the air, kicking the Nemesis and slamming the knife blade deep into its shoulder. The blade snapped off and Nemesis lost its grip on Brad, who went tumbling to the ground. Danielle wasted no time in taking up a defensive stance in front of him, ready to do anything to stop Nemesis from getting another shot at her terrified ally. 

Jill could make a move now and, picking up Danielle's Flashgun, fired three damaging shots into the Nemesis from behind. It fell with a groan to the ground. Jill ran over to Danielle, who was now leaning over the top of Brad, checking to make sure he was fine. They both looked up as Jill approached.

"Thanks for the assist, Jill," Danielle smiled at her. Jill nodded, handing her the gun.

"It's alright. Brad, are you alright?"

Brad nodded slowly. Danielle put a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe I should get you out of here. You okay to walk?"

Nodding, he staggered slowly to his feet, nearly losing his balance. Jill put out a hand to make sure he didn't fall.

"Why don't you go into the station?"

Brad shook his head very quickly. "No. Sorry Jill, but no. I only came to warn you about... It. I have no intentions of entering that police station. At all. I don't mean to sound so blunt, but you're on your own."

Jill nodded. "I understand Brad. Just be careful, wherever you decide to go."

"Nowhere's safe Brad, so where are we going to go?"

Brad shrugged. "There must be somewhere." He winced as he took a step toward Jill. "Here. Take my S.T.A.R.S. card. You'll need it for the computer."

Jill smiled. Danielle nodded. 

"Whether he likes it or not, Jill we'll meet you downtown. Okay? Keep an eye out for us, probably around Lonsdale Yard, alright? Or the Grill 13. In that respective area."

Jill nodded and took off into the police station. Danielle turned to Brad with her hands on her hips, and looked at him. He was leaning against the wall next to the gate, looking like he'd been torn apart by ravenous wolves and put back together with thread and glue. In other words, he looked like hell, the worse for wear. She shook her head, and placed her head on his shoulder. He looked at her. Danielle smiled and hugged him gently.

"Don't worry Brad, you'll get out of here, we both will."

Her voice was strained, and she was holding back tears. She honestly didn't know what to do. Brad noticed this easily, and forced himself to stand up, hugging her back with his free arm.

"Hey, don't you start, Dani. I'm the one supposed to be scared to death over everything. Don't you cry, understand? Because if you do, I think I may lose any faith I had in that we may get out. So don't give in."

Danielle nodded. "I'm hanging by a thread, Brad. I can't take very much more, and you know it. It comes down to it, and I think we're beginning to switch places as far as the scheme of attitude towards the situation goes."

He laughed. "Impossible. Absolutely impossible."

Danielle ran ahead of Brad, checking the paths and clearing the roads so that they could pass in relative safety. He had a hard time keeping up with her, as she quickly ducked in and out of shadows as if she was one herself. Danielle hadn't gotten herself even the slightest bit injured, but she was tired, and it showed. She leaned against the rusted gate as she waited for him to catch up, breathing heavily. He looked at her.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded, giving him an obvious look of fatigue. She turned around and crouched down, pointing her gun through the gate, and firing three shots, they heard the yelps of the dogs she shot down. Pulling on the handle, she opened the gate and walked through slowly, keeping her ears open. Suddenly she stopped, and pointed her gun towards the shadows.

"Get up, identify yourself and state your business if you have any, before I assume that you want to kill me and force me to act in self-defence."

The figure crouched in the dark underneath a crashed up pile of vehicles stood up and walked into the light, with his own gun pointed at her.

"The name's Carlos. Carlos Oliviera. I'm with the Umbrella Bio-Hazard Countermeasure Service, we were sent to rescue the civilians."

Brad walked up beside her, and cast a dark glare in Carlos' direction.

"Why lie? Umbrella is the reason why this is happening. Tell us who's in charge."

Carlos appeared shocked by the fact that he had just been accused of having something to do with what was going on here.

"Hey, I have nothing to do with Umbrella! I'm just a mercenary! I was hired! Look, I can't give you any answers about the company!"

Brad was about to say something else, but Danielle stopped him.

"Your name sounds familiar. My name's Danielle Lanza, I'm the captain of the R.P.D Special Force Service. Also, this is Brad Vickers, S.T.A.R.S."

Brad nodded, his hand close to his gun. Carlos lowered his weapon.

"You know, I seem to have heard your name before, too. Can't quite place where, though. And you look familiar, but I'm sure I've never met you."

Danielle shrugged. "Who knows? Come on Brad, we have to go."

Brad looked at her. "Where?"

She grabbed his sleeve and pulled him behind her.

"Wherever the hell I say."

Carlos watched as Brad and Danielle ducked in and out of the shadows. The moans of the zombies walking the streets was terrifying. The pair ducked into the restaurant up the street. Carlos couldn't help but wonder what they were up to, so he followed them. Just as he turned the corner, he came face to face with a zombie. He lifted his weapon and fired.

Brad and Danielle ran through the streets, firing on zombies in the way. Danielle was running too fast for Brad and he was falling behind. He gave up and sat down nearby. Danielle stopped.

"Brad! What the hell are you doing? Get up! Come on, we've gotta go!"

"I can't, Dani. Leave me, go find Jill."

"What?! No, I'm not leaving you!"

"Go get Jill. I'm not gonna make it."

"Brad, don't talk crap. Come on, get up!"

"No, I'm going to die. We're all going to die! Jill's going to die, Chris's going to die-"

Danielle tried to get Brad on his feet and moving. "Brad, come on! We've got to find the others!"

"Barry's going to die, Rebecca's going to die-"

At this point, Brad was so frightened that he was babbling incoherently. He was mumbling something about how everyone wasn't going to make it out alive, while Danielle was trying to snap him out of his daze and get him to the restaurant. She was becoming impatient and Brad continued on. She knew that there was only one way to get his attention. She took a deep breath and screamed at the top of her voice,

"Brad! Shut the fuckin' hell up! Don't make me do something I'll regret!"

She followed this almost instantly by slapping him across the face. Brad immediately shut up and turned Danielle's way. He had never heard her speak to her friends like that before, even in her worst temper. Danielle had a cold look on her face, yet was satisfied at Brad's reaction. Brad shook his head clearingly.

"I... I am Brad.... That's right. Uhhh, what were we talking about again?"

Danielle looked across the table at Brad, they had both calmed down by now. She shook her head.

"Look. If you don't want to hear that again, don't get me started, and shut up when I speak to you."

Even though they had calmed down, Danielle was still very upset at his babbling. He looked away. He couldn't even bring himself to look at her, embarrassed as he was.

"And I wish to God, you'd cut that crap out Brad, because if you don't I may have to get a little carried away next time. You do get the picture, don't you?"

Brad looked up sharply. "Look, I'm sorry alright?! For Christ's sakes, look at me, compared to yourself. I'm half the... the... ahh... person you are, and half the voice."

Danielle sneered. "And what, might I ask, were you about to say just then?"

Before he could answer, Carlos walked in the door, he took one glance at Danielle and Brad, grinned sheepishly and continued into the kitchen. Just at that moment, they heard voices coming from the kitchen. Then a familiar harsh voice echoed through the restaurant.

"S.T.A.R.S......."

Danielle and Brad looked at each other and said, in deadpan voices, "Jill."

They sprang from their seats to hear the blast of a grenade launcher, as Jill and Carlos ran from the kitchen. Jill ran past them quickly, without stopping, heading for the door.

"Hey, great to see you all, bye now, can't stay!"

Carlos shook their hands as he ran past. "Nice voice, you'd make a great Greek actor, Ms. Lanza!"

Danielle and Brad were bewildered, but just as Jill and Carlos reached the door, the Nemesis crashed through the roof in front of them; it had come through the vents from the kitchen. Jill screamed and doubled-back, heading back towards the kitchen. Danielle nodded.

"They have the right idea, let's get the hell out of here, too."

They turned and followed her out the back door of the restaurant. When they got out there, Carlos and Jill were talking in the alley behind the restaurant.

"I know, you wanna ask me out. All the foxy ladies love my accent. It drives them crazy."

Jill looked shocked. "What?! Keep dreaming. Tell me, why did Umbrella send your team in?"

Carlos shrugged. "We're here to rescue the civilians."

Jill walked up to him. "Don't lie to me, Umbrella is the reason this whole mess began!"

Carlos was growing agitated. "Look, we're just mercenaries. Hired hands. Do you really think the master would tell his dogs why they have to retrieve the steak he just threw?" Jill looked away, Carlos continued. "If you're looking for answers, talk to someone else, I am not with Umbrella. Believe it or not, we're only here to rescue the civilians. If you can trust me, then join us. Think about it!"

He turned to go.

"Wait!" Danielle called. She was growing more and more intrigued about him, and was positive that she had met him, or heard of him before. Carlos stopped in his tracks, and turned around slowly. He seemed a little upset.

"What?" he demanded. Brad stepped forward.

"Hey, don't use that sort of tone-"

Danielle stopped him. "Don't. I'll handle it," she turned back to Carlos. "Carlos, be careful, alright. I don't want you to get yourself killed until I find out why I seem to know you, when we've never met."

Carlos shrugged. "You too Ms. Lanza, or if you'd prefer, Danielle," Then he laughed. "Maybe we're long-lost brother and sister."

Then he left. Danielle stood where she was, watching the spot where he had been standing.

"Maybe," she said quietly, and turned away. The other two were silent. Suddenly, the silence was fractured, as the Nemesis crashed through the door behind them, and made a swipe for Jill. The three of them dodged the swipe, and ran down the alley. Brad shoved Danielle behind him.

"Stay behind me."

Danielle smiled to herself for a moment, then suddenly made a grab for his gun.

"Give me your gun, I'm a better shot than you."

Jill was already firing on the advancing monster. Brad shook his head, holding the weapon out of her reach.

"No, stay behind me."

"Give-me-your-gun," she wasn't getting anywhere. "Fine, I'll use my own gun," she said, reaching for the Flashgun. But it wasn't in the holster. Then she looked up at Brad. "Wait a damn minute- that IS my gun! Give it back!"

Brad fired at the Nemesis. "Just stay there!"

Danielle mumbled something under her breath. Then she pushed him aside, and ran at the Nemesis.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Brad cried. The Nemesis turned around as Danielle charged by it. And it found itself looking down the barrel of a magnum. The gun fired, the Nemesis slumped to the ground and moaned the word 'S.T.A.R.S.' under its breath, lying motionless on the pavers. Standing alongside Danielle with her smoking gun at her side, was Rachelle, looking very worse for wear. She grinned weakly at them.

"That's one you owe me."

Danielle looked up at her as she walked down the stairs to become level with the others.

"We wouldn't owe you," she began, glaring at Brad, who shyly put the gun behind his back, grinning sheepishly, "If someone hadn't nicked my gun."

The four of them sat in the booth in the restaurant, talking quietly. Jill, Rachelle, Danielle and Brad.

"Well, I don't know what to think now. This has gotten out of hand, and all I want to do is get out of here and forget about it," Jill began. "But I have to help the others. They may not need me, but all the same, I'd feel so much better if I was there with them. If it was me out there in Europe well, I'd like to have some friendly company."

Danielle agreed. "I'll probably back out of that one, though. I mean, it's not that I don't like Chris and the others any less than you guys, but all the same, I'm only here by accident. As with most of us I'm sure."

They all nodded. Jill stood up, lifting the rather heavy looking grenade launcher as she did so.

"I'm going to follow Carlos. Do you want to accompany me?"

Danielle looked at Brad. "Well, even though I should have learnt from my past mistake of suggesting pairs, I want to concentrate on getting out of here alive."

Rachelle stood up. "Well, I'll go with you Jill. I might not stay with you the whole time, but for now, I think I will."

The two young women waved to Danielle and Brad. Danielle nodded and smiled.

"Goodnight, and hopefully we'll see you some time tomorrow."

Jill nodded. "Hopefully."

They walked through the front door. Danielle sighed.

"Back where we started. Now, where were we?"

Brad shrugged. "I don't know, I guess we've both simmered down enough to forget about it."

Danielle nodded. "Yeah just remember, forgiven, not forgotten."

"Maybe we should go too."

Danielle stood up and nodded. "I agree. There's a warehouse district on the other side of town. There are loads of sewer tunnels under the city streets, and many of them lead out of town, especially the ones in that district; it's the easiest way for them to get rid of the junk the warehouses spit out their backsides. Do you want to try that?"

Brad nodded and followed her out of the restaurant.


	9. 7: A Worsening Situation

Chapter 7: A Worsening Situation

Danielle looked up at the burning wooden girders above them.

"I hope they'll hold until we're well away."

Brad looked back at her. "They'll hold. Come on, move a bit faster, and we won't have to worry about it."

Danielle nodded, and walked up beside him, linking her arm in his.

"What are you doing?" he asked. Danielle cuddled into his shoulder.

"What a lovely night for a walk," she said pleasantly, drawing her gun and firing it upwards. Behind them a Licker; a monster with a long, lance-like tongue, crashed to the ground, dead. Brad grinned. Danielle shrugged, and was about to speak, when there was a huge crash, and the burning rafters fell across the alleyway, blocking the path. They stood there for a moment, looking at the path.

"Well, I guess that way's out of the question now," Brad said dully. Danielle nodded.

"Oh well. I guess it means that nothing can sneak up on us for now."

"Don't speak too soon!" Brad exclaimed, and pointed towards the fire. There was a tall, heavily built, dark figure walking through the fire towards them.

"S.T.A.R.S........."

Brad backed up, and pulled his gun. Danielle glared at the Nemesis, boldly walking towards it.

"When I get my hands on you, I'll rip your tentacles off and strangle you with them!"

Brad reached out and grabbed her shoulder, dragging her along, down the alley.

"No you damn well won't!"

Danielle stumbled along behind Brad, and they darted into a room off the alley. Brad sank to the floor, panting. Danielle laughed.

"You're meant to be a police officer, Brad Vickers. You remind me of Jason O'Connor."

"Who's that?"

"One of the former S.F.S. members. He couldn't run for five minutes without getting a stitch. And then he'd tell everyone else that they were lazy. I don't see him keeping his job now, do you?"

Brad grinned. "Well, I kept mine, and I'm proud of it."

Danielle smiled, and helped him back to his feet. "How could they fire someone as loveable as you anyway?"

Brad looked at her cockeyed. Danielle smiled and opened the door a crack.

"Looks like he's gone. Let's go."

"Carlos! Slow down!"

"You wanna come with me, then keep up with me!"

Rachelle shook her head. "You're a real turd! Slow down for just a moment will you?"

He stopped suddenly in his path and looked back as Rachelle and Jill came pelting down the hill towards him. They slowed down to a stop as they caught up. Rachelle looked around the quiet street.

"Are we there yet?"

Carlos laughed. "Sorry. Just a little further."

He walked with them this time and led them through the rubble-strewn streets towards the cathedral. He motioned over his shoulder to the clock tower.

"We've gotta head there, but I've gotta take care of something first. Keep heading down this road, okay? See you when I see you!"

Rachelle put out a hand to stop him, but he was already too far away. Jill rolled her eyes.

"Let's do what the man says."

Danielle looked both ways down the street before venturing out of the alley. She wrinkled her nose disappointedly and put her hands on her hips with an exasperated sigh.

"Excitement please!"

Brad came running out behind her and clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Don't you know you never ever ask for excitement at times like these? I'm low on ammo, I'll bet you're low on ammo, so just be happy with what you've got."

Danielle sighed. "I'm getting bored, that's all. But I guess you're right. We'll get sick of the quiet and when it gets dangerous again we'll be wishing they would all just go away. It's like working at a fast food outlet. It gets quiet and you're bored, and you're wishing customers would just come so you wouldn't be bored, and then they swamp you all at once, and then you wish they would just go away."

Brad nodded. "Exactly. Drawn out and a bad example, by exactly."

Suddenly they were interrupted by a sputtering sound that seemed like an engine. Looking up, they saw a motorcycle speed across the intersection. Danielle ran over and watched as the motorcyclist pulled over next to Emmy's. Danielle and Brad ran towards her, but stopped short. The diner was being surrounded by zombies. Danielle took a few steps forward and aimed, but realised there were too many of them. She stepped back and shook her head.

"She's gone."

Suddenly a single shot rang out. And the girl, accompanied by a young man in an R.P.D uniform ran out of the alley that ran up the side of the diner. They looked around for a way out.

"Hey! Hey there!" Danielle decided to open fire. She shot down three zombies and drew their attention. The two ran right towards them, through the clear path, and stood alongside them, the officer helping them to shoot down as many of the advancing zombies as possible. Danielle suggested a different strategy. "This is a waste of valuable time and ammunition. Let's make a run for it!"

Danielle grabbed the girl's arm and dragged her along behind her, Brad and the officer following closely. When they had gotten around the corner, Danielle ducked into a nearby building. The other three followed her inside. Danielle bolted the door behind them.

"Right. I should introduce myself, I'm your guide, Danielle Lanza. Captain of the R.P.D Special Forces Service. This is my sidekick, Brad Vickers. One of the last remaining members of Raccoon City's elite S.T.A.R.S. unit. You've met the residents of Raccoon City, I presume, a quick synopsis of the situation: Umbrella Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has screwed the city something shocking and you've just been caught right in the middle of it. 

"I can tell you're both from out of town. You," she said, pointing to the girl, "Because of how casually you were walking around, and you," she said, turning to the officer, "Because I know everyone on the force and I don't know you. We just saved your asses back there, but don't show any gratitude, I don't want any. You can find your own exit if you like or stick with us. I'll be pleased to offer any answers to any questions you may have on your mind, directions, perhaps. Keep your arms and legs attached to your body at all times, keep a constant supply of weaponry available to yourselves and enjoy the experience. Welcome to your worst nightmare."

Brad laughed at how she said it. "You certainly know how to make light of any situation, don't you, Dani."

Danielle grinned. "I'm serious. One day they'll make a theme park based on Raccoon City, and we'll have the derogatory jobs of being actors in the ride."

"And we'll find out it's run by Umbrella, and the zombies are real."

Danielle rolled her eyes. "Umbrella's not going to be around long enough to contemplate a ride like that, because when I get out of here, I'm off to the main American lab to blow it sky high. Then we'll boycott the company."

The officer looked at her. "Captain. Leon S. Kennedy, I was assigned here to help deal with-"

Danielle smiled slightly. "Terrorism, I'll bet they said. Kennedy, you say? Oh yeah. That's right. Aren't you meant to contact your captain before you come in? I haven't heard anything from you. I hired you, I was planning to put you on the S.F.S. team. The S.F.S. doesn't work for Irons anymore, though. But you're still welcome to join. How's this. If you make it out of Raccoon City alive and I see you outside the city after this, you can both join."

The girl looked at her quizzically. "Uhh, Claire Redfield. I'm looking for my-"

"Your brother Chris? You won't find him around here."

Claire jumped up. "You know Chris?"

"Know him?" Danielle laughed. "I crashed into him on my first day in the R.P.D. I know you, too. I've seen you before, Claire. Don't you remember? It was the 4th of July bash at the station. The night before you left town for some reason. I don't know where he's gone, though, we're planning to go to Europe and confront Spencer himself, but we weren't going until we'd dealt with the American HQ. But I do know Chris' diary's in the police station, if you're game enough to cut across town and go look."

"I'm game! I have to find him."

Leon shrugged. "I can't let you go alone, so I'll accompany you. Besides. I want to find a slightly more realistic explanation for this crisis. Umbrella making monsters. Bullshit."

"You don't believe me?" Danielle asked, raising an eyebrow. "Fine then. You go to your police station, you go and look for your explanation. I just made it sound funny, that's all. You'll get the same explanation of events that I gave you. Umbrella's the bad guy here, and if you don't believe me, you soon enough will. There's a cop car out the back of the building. I can see it through the window. Follow the signs and you'll be there in no time. I'd make sure you're armed. Claire, there's most likely a handgun in the glove box. Good luck guys. See you on the flip side."

With that, Danielle ran out the door, followed by Brad. Leon shrugged.

"I still can't believe it, though."

Claire ran to the back door. "Come on Leon, we have to go."

Jill looked at her cousin. They had been running for the past half hour, gathering up supplies to help the remaining U.B.C.S. personnel move a broken down tram that they had set up base in. Rachelle and Jill thought of it as a stroke of luck that they had run into Carlos again before they reached the cathedral, but then they met his sergeant, Nicholai Vinoviev. Nicholai was a grey-haired Russian mercenary, and seemed to have a bit of an attitude problem. At first, he had refused to allow Rachelle and Jill to help them, claiming that they couldn't be trusted because they were S.T.A.R.S. members. But Carlos had helped them to convince him to co-operate. Jill sighed.

"Rachelle, can you do me a favour?"

Rachelle looked up. "Depends."

"On what?"

"On what this so-called 'favour' might be."

Jill smiled. "I'll check this alley, you check that one. Okay?"

Rachelle nodded. "If Dani were here, she'd be very against us splitting up."

"Well she's not, and so she can't complain, now can she?"

Rachelle grinned and shook her head. "Take care, Jilly."

Jill looked at her before she continued into the alley.

"Don't call me that, Shellie."

Rachelle grinned. "'Course not, Jill. I was fooling with you."

Jill shook her head as Rachelle took off down the other alley. She leaned against the wall and sighed.

"This is never going to end. I swear Umbrella wants us dead for sure now. Or maybe...." she thought for a moment, "Or maybe they're after Danielle. She's a renegade officer and she's in league with Bio-Counter...."

Rachelle looked around cautiously and held her gun ready as she ducked into the alley. Being alone in a place where you only really had one way to run reminded her all too much of the underground back at the mansion. There didn't appear to be anything in the alley, but Rachelle watched the windows on either side carefully. It was too quiet, and it made her all the more uneasy. There was a door just a little further down. Moving slowly, she opened the door just a crack and peered inside. It was a dark room, and the door appeared the only way in or out. Feeling around for a light switch before she ventured in, she found one and flicked it on, and the room burst into light. There were no monsters, but several shelves filled with boxes and other things.

Heading straight for the shelves, she began to rifle through the boxes. She looked up with a start as the door slammed closed, but seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she turned back to what she was doing. She found a box holding three clips for the magnum. She pocketed them, and just as she was about to start on the next box, she whirred around at the sound of a wet hiss, and found herself surrounded by Lickers.

But not just any Lickers. These Lickers were massive and had more claws. Spines sprouted from their backs, and they were even more ugly. The Mega-Lickers advanced slowly, and Rachelle wasted no time in drawing her weapon and opening fire on them. There were five in the room all up, and as she fired, each Licker took about 6 shots to kill. She took them out one by one, when suddenly she was met with the dull click of her trigger.

There were two Lickers left, and she had no more means of effectively defending herself against the monsters. And they seemed to know, too. They stopped advancing and sat back, their long, saliva-covered tongues flicking around in front of them. It would only be a matter of time before one of them shot out its foul weapon and struck her dead.

If a B.O.W. were to walk in right then and there and kill the Lickers, she would be eternally grateful, as most of the B.O.W.s weren't all that fast, and she may have a better chance at escaping. Rachelle crouched in the corner, knowing that there was not a living soul in earshot who would reach her in time, her only chance was to scream out for help.

A shrill scream echoed out in the alley, and Danielle seemed to recognise it.

"Brad! I think it's Rachelle!"

Brad looked in the direction of the scream. "Stay here, I'll go check it out."

"I want to go with you."

Brad turned around and put a hand on her arm. "I'll come back. You wait right here and don't move. You'll be fine."

Without waiting for her to protest again, Brad ran off in the direction of the cry. He reached the door in the alley and flung it open, and was greeted with the sight of Rachelle cowering in the corner, and two huge Lickers, which spun to face him as he opened the door. Without giving shock a chance to set in, Brad opened fire on the monsters, and took them down. Rachelle opened her eyes and looked at the dead Lickers, then up at Brad. She jumped up and hugged him.

"Brad! I could kiss you!"

Brad nodded and stepped back. "I'm sure you would if you weren't married."

Rachelle glanced away. Brad shook his head.

"I'm sorry Rachelle. I didn't mean to hit a soft spot."

Rachelle just waved it away. "Don't worry about it."

Brad nodded and led her out the door. Rachelle was about to say something, when the silence was broken by a gunshot, answered by another. Several more shots rang out, and then there was silence again. Rachelle turned to Brad.

"That sounded like the Flashgun!"

"Jesus! Danielle! I left Danielle back there!"

They ran back to where Brad had left Danielle. There was a pool of blood on the ground that hadn't been there before. Rachelle leaned down and lifted something on a black leather rope out of the pool. It was a talisman with a pentagram on it, a dragon etched in the center. Rachelle looked up at Brad.

"Dragon Pentagram.......This is Danielle's!"

Brad picked up one of the discarded shells from the ground.

"These aren't Ivory shells. They're parabellum rounds. The Ivory uses copper, doesn't it?"

Rachelle stood up and looked around. "Right. There's only one way she could have gone. Come on."

They ran off down a path to the left.

Jill stood stock still in the end of the alley, zombies closing in around her. They were just about to grab her, when they began to jolt and blood spurted from them, as they fell to the ground. Carlos shouldered his gun.

"You really need to learn how to take care of yourself."

Jill put a hand on her hip. "Thanks Carlos. Just in time."

Carlos walked up to her. "You have a gun. Sure you know how to use it? Want me to show you?"

"You're so funny, Carlos," Jill said sarcastically. Carlos shrugged.

"This I do know."

Jill went quiet. "I heard screaming and gunshots before. Do you know anything about that?"

Carlos shook his head. "I thought it was you, that's why I came running."

"It wasn't me.... Oh God. Do you think it may have been Rachelle?"

Carlos looked around. "Could have been, but Jill. That was a while ago. Do you think she'd still be... alive?"

Jill shrugged, and didn't say anything. She looked down at the dead zombies and kicked one of them. Suddenly it grabbed her foot and tried to bite her. Crying out in surprise, she kicked its head clean off its shoulders. Carlos laughed slightly.

"They don't give up."

Jill kicked the zombie's arms away and moved slightly to the side.

"No. And I wish they'd just get a life."

Carlos looked at her and laughed. Jill smiled slightly when she realised the irony of what she had just said. Carlos looked away.

"Well, come on. We best get going. Staying here pondering over what may have happened to Rachelle isn't going to get us anywhere except dead. I say that we get moving. Who knows. Maybe Rachelle's back at the tram waiting for us right now."

Jill shrugged and walked off, following Carlos down the alley.


	10. 8: Friend or Foe?

Chapter 8: Friend Or Foe?

Brad grabbed the door handle before Rachelle could turn it. They were standing outside a factory in the warehouse district of the town. Rachelle looked up at him curiously and kept her hand on the handle. Brad looked at her.

"No stunts, no bravado, no heroics."

"No shit?" she asked mockingly with a quick raise of her eyebrows. Brad shook his head and opened the door, walking slowly inside. Rachelle grinned and closed the door, but the smile fell from her face and she froze. Brad had also stopped in his tracks. They were in the rear lobby of an office building disguised as a warehouse on the outside. There was a desk in one corner, and from behind that desk came a sickening crunching. Rachelle walked to the nearest door and showed Brad where it was. He nodded, and advanced slowly towards the desk. He leaned down and looked behind. Suddenly he sprang back and ran for the door, as a giant grey dog bounded from behind the desk. Rachelle dived through the door, followed closely by Brad and they slammed the door on the beast, bolting it shut. The dog continued to barge the door. Brad backed up.

"That door's not going to hold for much longer."

"I know," Rachelle was already looking for another way out of the room. But there was only the one door. Suddenly she looked up. "Brad, give me a boost."

Brad bent down and helped her up. She pushed at a grating on the roof, and pushed it in. Pulling herself up, she turned around and reached down to help Brad up. She had just pulled him into the duct when the door gave and the giant creature bounded into the room, sniffing around like a giant tracker dog, but because the air conditioning filled the entire room, it confused the giant mutt. It looked like a great big mutant wolf. Rachelle glanced at Brad, then quietly began to crawl through the duct until she reached a grating on the wall of the duct. She waved over her shoulder to Brad.

"Here. Come on."

Kicking out the grating, she slid out of the vent, Brad coming down just behind her. They looked around. They were in some sort of big room, with yellow tinted skylights on the roof. It was apparently dawn, as light was streaming through. It was once again day. Rachelle checked the date on her watch.

"Well. What do you know. 29th of September. Time flies."

Brad laughed bluntly. "Heh. Let's get moving."

Suddenly there was the sound of a gun being cocked, and they spun to see Daionera walking up behind them, a gun pointed at Rachelle's head.

"Well. What a surprise. Brad, I don't believe you've met Daionera O'Sullivan."

Daionera turned wordlessly and pointed the gun at his head. Brad leaned in towards Rachelle.

"Friend or foe?" he asked quietly.

"Pure bitch. Female Wesker," she whispered back.

"I see."

Daionera kept the gun trained at them. "I suppose you're wondering where your friend is, aren't you."

This made Brad move. He took a step forward and Rachelle grabbed his arm to stop him from acting rashly. Daionera grinned nastily.

"Well, that little prat Danielle was almost under my beck and call, until those stupid S.F.S. sluts Zoë Lawrence, Jennifer Lowry and Dayna Kadenomi broke in and stopped me."

Rachelle turned to Brad. "S.F.S.? S.F.S. is still around when S.T.A.R.S. is almost gone?"

"Danielle was right by choosing those members, I see. But I thought that Dayna contracted the virus?"

Daionera shrugged. "Obviously someone did something about it. All I know is that those three bitches got Danielle out of here, before I could hand her over to Umbrella like I was going to."

"If the girls were here, what's to say that Max, Thomas and Richard aren't?" Rachelle thought aloud.

"Not that it would be of any use to you, Rachelle. I still haven't got a chance to repay you for what happened in the park that day. Don't worry about your friend the captain, she won't get far, I will find her and hand her over to the company as promised."

"Good luck getting a hold of her, Dawn," Rachelle snarled. Daionera sneered.

"Good luck getting out of here, Rachelle," she said slyly, and opened a door behind her. Standing behind the door, with blood dripping from its mouth, was the dog. "Meet the Werewolf. I think he wants to play. Do be a good girl Rachelle, and keep him occupied. Dismembering your bodies piece by piece should make him happy."

With that, she unhooked a grappling gun from her belt and fired it up, lifting off the ground and up to the next floor to safety. With a cruel laugh, she disappeared. Rachelle watched her go, and Brad grabbed her arm.

"Come on! There must be a way out of here."

Rachelle nodded and ran away, followed closely by Brad. The Werewolf watched them for a moment, before chasing after them. Rachelle vaulted onto a large box, and helped Brad up. From here, she found that she could get onto the next ledge. Brad followed closely behind, but it wasn't long before the Werewolf found that it too could use the box to get up. Rachelle held a door open.

"Brad hurry!" They ran through the door and slammed it shut, sliding the bolt back. "The door's steel, it should hold for a while at least. Come on, let's not waste any more time."

She turned to run, but slipped on something, stumbling. Brad leaned down and touched it. It was a large patch of torn black and white fur. Tediously, he lifted it up so that Rachelle could see. It was part of an ear. Rachelle made a face.

"Ehhhr! That's just sick! What is that? The remains of a cat?"

Brad scrutinised it carefully and shook his head, a stony look on his face.

"It's tagged. It's got the Umbrella logo on it...."

"What does the tag say?"

"It's hard to tell. This tag's a bit charred.... Oh Jesus. Rachelle... when you were in the mansion underground... you didn't meet the Smokies again, did you?"

Rachelle shook her head. "Why do you ask?"

"T-092."

"What's that?"

"Smokey's ID number."

"Oh shit," Rachelle looked around cautiously. "Does that mean that Smokey...."

There was a growl down the hall. Rachelle spun to see what it was. Four pairs of eyes glowed in the shadows. In complete synchrony, two huge cats slinked out of the dark. The two halves of Smokey sat in the streams of light coming through the window just past the deep shadows. Now they had completely healed, the patches of bare skin where they had been torn in half were now covered with black and white fur, and they looked like two black and white panthers, but their ears were still tattered and they bore some physical resemblances to the other B.O.W.s.

 Brad stepped backwards towards the door, and suddenly it began to shake as the Werewolf pounded it from the other side. The two Smokies sat like panthers in anticipation. Rachelle slowly drew her gun, and attracted their attention. Both moved their heads in the exact same way. Brad shook his head.

"Curious. It's as though they think the exact same things."

"It's like one is the real cat, and the other is a mirror. They were like that at the mansion too. But I guarantee you. If we go separate directions, they will separate. There's no way we can get out of here. We're done for."

Brad shook his head and drew his gun, making sure that the cats could see it. They both shied back.

"Well. What do you know."

Brad took a few steps towards the cats, and fired at the floor directly in front of them. Both animals jumped back in unison. Rachelle watched curiously as Brad herded them into a corner.

"Brad, be careful, it could be a trick!"

"Don't worry Shellie, I'm anticipating that."

Rachelle aimed her own gun and cocked it, drawing the cats' attentions. They sat where they were, their glazed eyes fixated on the barrels of the guns being pointed at them. Rachelle moved backwards until her hand found the handle of another door. Brad backed up as well, the cats following slowly. Brad was just backing through the door after Rachelle, when the first cat shot out its paw and grabbed his trouser leg. Crying out in surprise, Brad fell to the floor, his gun going off, expecting the cats to be upon him within seconds. But they didn't move. They just watched.

"What?! Why don't you kill me and get it over with?!"

The cats cocked their heads as if they understood, but couldn't understand why he wanted them to kill him. Suddenly the bolt on the door bent in, and the Werewolf crashed into the room. The cats let go and sprang over the top of Brad, and though the cats were in the same room, Rachelle slammed the door as Brad scrambled through. This time, the cats let them pass by without so much as an attempted advance. But it wouldn't have mattered, the room they were in was inescapable as far as they could tell. Rachelle sat down on the floor and put her head in her hands.

"If we leave, the Werewolf will kill us, and if we stay, Smokies are going to get tired of playing with us and will kill us. Goodbye Brad. It's been a pleasure."

She was alerted by the feeling of a furred thing brushing against her hand, and she looked up to see one of Smokies had brushed past her, and its tail had swept past her hand. Brad was watching them queerly.

"Rachelle. I... I think that maybe there was something about Smokey that we didn't pick up on." Rachelle looked up at the two cats who were once again sitting like mirror images of each other, even their tails swishing in the same pattern. "Danielle said that some of the T-Virus papers said that the virus had been documented as having no effect on felines and some other animals, like rabbits and mice. The G-virus affects them because it was more powerful. But Smokey is a T-Virus monster. Maybe, just maybe, it mutated, but didn't change."

"Brad, are you nuts? Smokey attacked us at the mansion."

"Perhaps it was preliminary. Did you consider that? Smokies could very well have killed me, or you, but did you notice that when they were split, they were slightly less violent? And why do you think that there were no reports of deaths like those that were associated with the Cerberus dogs? Because my theory is that Smokey is docile."

Brad took a few steps towards the cats. Rachelle looked up.

"I think you need a different theory, Brad. For all we know, they could want you to think that. Then we get all trusting over them and they turn on us."

Brad shrugged. "If they kill me, you'll know I was wrong."

"And to think this is Chickenheart saying this," Rachelle mumbled to herself. Brad kneeled down in front of the cats and held out his hand. They both watched him like a hawk, but didn't move. Getting a little more game, Brad touched one of them, and it drew its head back slightly. 

"Brad.... If you've got a magnificent plan to get us out of here, hurry it up, that door...."

Brad nodded, and stood up. "Maybe they can fight the Werewolf."

"Brad, you're talking about using a T-B.O.W. against a G-B.O.W. It just doesn't happen."

Suddenly the Smokies took off to one side, and rammed the wall, busting in a panel and revealing a large vent. It took them a minute, but Rachelle and Brad realised it was an elevator shaft. The two cats leapt in and dug their claws into the metal of the shaft, climbing down like it was a tree. Rachelle looked over.

"We can use the holes they made in the shaft as hand and foot holds."

Brad nodded. "Are we trusting them now?"

"I wouldn't trust them as far as I could spit them, but for now I'll follow."

She swung her leg over and backed down the shaft, and Brad followed. They heard the door above them bust open, and as they looked up, they could see the panting dog peering down the shaft. Rachelle backed further down, expecting the beast to follow. But instead it turned and ran off, howling as it did so. As Rachelle reached her foot down for the next foothold, she felt something hard, and realised she was standing on top of the elevator car. The emergency hatch on the roof had been clawed open, and so had the elevator doors. Jumping through, they found themselves on the first floor, the glass doors smashed open and the cats nowhere in sight. They were in a different lobby to the one when they had come in through the back. Brad grabbed Rachelle.

"I'll bet the S.F.S. got Danielle out. Come on. Let's not waste any more time."

"We thought there might be a business in zombie hunting, or something similar, so we decided to look into it, and that's how we found Bio-Counter. We did leave just like you said Dani, but we came back to find you."

Zoë explained the S.F.S.'s return to Raccoon City to their bewildered captain. Danielle shook her head.

"They're not going to stand for this... Umbrella will catch on.... Daionera saw you...."

Jennifer, a woman with long red hair leaned down over the indoor gantry she was standing on with Thomas and Richard. 

"Captain, we're special forces. If we get caught, we won't squeal. Not about Bio-Counter or you."

"You didn't see Rachelle or Brad? Or Jill and a mercenary named Carlos?"

Dayna shook her head. "The only survivors we saw were you and O'Sullivan. Oh, Dani. There's a Bio-Counter chopper coming to pick us up in an hour. We'll take you back to compound."

Danielle stood up and shook her head. "No. I have to go and find my friends, alive or dead."

"I admire your loyalty," Max said, leaning back in his chair.

"I don't know if I'd sacrifice myself for my friends, I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to that," Richard thought aloud. Zoë looked at him.

"Yeah? I'm sure they would for you," she turned to Danielle, and saluted. "I salute you, Captain Lanza. I hope you find your friends and get out. And I hope we meet up again. By the way, it could be a good idea if you keep this with you," she said, and handed Danielle a blue vial. "That's G-Vaccine. You know, just in case."

"Thanks Zoë. And there's nothing to hope," Danielle said, returning the salute. "I will find my friends...And I will get out. I'll see you at Bio-Counter."

Thomas nodded and handed her a skeleton key patterned with Celtic weaves.

"Hey, I found it lying around, who knows, it may come in useful."

"A lock-picking key," Danielle smiled. "Trust you to have it, Thomas. Hey, take care of yourselves. Till then!"

Danielle left quickly, closing the door and running off into the littered streets. Max watched the closed door.

"Think she'll find them?"

Richard shrugged. "There's a chance."

"Think they'll get out?"

Jennifer shook her head. "Not a chance."

Danielle ran full pelt down the street. Close behind her was a big slow-moving B.O.W. similar to the Nemesis but not as disgustingly ugly. Suddenly the black and white cats leapt from behind a smashed car and ran for the B.O.W. Danielle turned and cheered, bolting for the nearest door. To her relief, she found it unlocked. Closing the door quickly but quietly, she slipped the lock in and smiled.

"You go, Smokey. Kill that B.O.W."

A sudden click broke the silence in the room as a gun was cocked behind her.

"Turn around very slowly and keep your hands where I can see them."

Danielle kept her head low as she turned to face the figure. She stepped back with surprise when she recognised her.

"Annette!"

Annette looked up quickly. "You! What are you doing here?"

"Hiding from the monsters.... You can put that gun away, you know."

Annette shook her head suddenly, and adjusted her hold on the weapon.

"I think not. This is as good a time as any to finish what I set out to do."

Danielle was confused. Suddenly she realised. Glancing to the side, she saw that Annette was wearing a lab coat. It was stained red, but another thing that stood out was the ID on the coat.

"You work for Umbrella," she looked at her quickly. "I remember you now! I met you in Chicago! You stupid cow! I can't believe you would lie like that!"

Annette approached her quickly, pressing the gun to her chest. "Yeah, I know you too. I remember. Irons was right. Sometimes only the tiniest things can spark a person's memory."

Danielle suddenly spun her hand, knocking away the handgun and pulling out her own.

"Now who's in control?"

Annette stepped back. "Go ahead, shoot me. I don't have anything left anyway."

Danielle shook her head. "I'm not like you, Birkin. I should pull this trigger, but I'm not going to. Instead, I'm going to give you another chance."

Annette shook her head, lowering her eyes. Her voice was breaking, and she sounded as though she was fighting tears. 

"Don't. Because it won't matter anyway. I managed to rescue the last vial of the new Z-Virus from the lab after Umbrella cleaned it out, and once Umbrella begins using it, it will all be over for you all."

Danielle raised an eyebrow and lowered her gun. "Z-Virus? You've just caught my attention."

Annette showed her the vial of bluish liquid. "What, this? It is an agent more powerful than the T- and G-Viruses. It works in an even shorter amount of time and the resulting effects are doubled, sometimes even tripled."

"And I'll bet you're crazy enough to open that vial."

"Maybe I am. There is no vaccine to this virus. There is also no vaccine for the T- and G-Viruses either, so you'd better be careful."

"That's what you think," Danielle said, pulling her own vial from her pocket. "Vaccine that covers both viruses."

Annette shook her head. "Show me that." She took the vial and turned it in her hand. "I should've known. Bio-Counter. They're always on top of these things."

"How about a trade?"

She looked up. "A what?"

"I'll give you the virus vaccine because something is telling me from that glazed look in your eyes that you've contracted it, and you give me the Z-Virus."

Annette laughed uneasily and stepped back quickly. "No no no.... You're trying to fool me. I'll trade and then I'll find out that the vaccine isn't worth anything at all."

"Well what am I going to do with the Z-Virus huh? Look. In the time you knew me at the precinct, did I ever do anything you would deem untrustworthy?"

"No.... But you don't understand-"

"Listen Annette. You don't have to answer to Umbrella any more. I mean, gawd.... If a company ruined my life I'd boycott them so bad it hurt. That's why I don't see the reasoning behind you hanging onto this last remnant of a company that, when we're through with them, will be driven so far into the ground they'll come out the other side of the planet. If you really don't trust me, then stick with me. I'll prove to you that this vaccine is genuine."

Annette turned away. "You have no idea what it's like to work for Umbrella. They chase you. That's what Daionera O'Sullivan is still doing in Raccoon. If she wasn't on an assignment to find you, me and William, she'd be gone by now."

"I still don't understand. I'm running from Umbrella too. Anyone who survives these onslaughts are. If you change your mind, there's a room on the top floor of the comms building near here. It's the only room on that floor. If you do change your mind, I'll meet you there. Tomorrow afternoon. If not, well I'll see you on the flip side."

"W... wait," Annette fingered the vial nervously. "I do feel a little uneasy hanging onto this.... I... I guess I'll trust you. It'll do me no good hanging onto something when I'm likely to die with it. Here."

Danielle took the vial and slipped it into her pocket. Then she handed over the vaccine.

"I think I understand why you were so reluctant to give this up," she shook her head, searching herself for the words she wanted to use. "I guess, in your position, I would be too. Good luck, Annette."


	11. 9: Treason in the Strangest Form

Chapter 9: Treason In The Strangest Form

Brad looked around the corner. In the distance he could hear the desolate moaning of the zombies, and even the faraway discharging of an automatic machine gun. Rachelle stepped up beside him.

"Raccoon's too big. We'll never find her."

"It's easy. Follow the electric gunshots."

He stopped and listened, then led them along the path again. Suddenly Rachelle grabbed his shoulder.

"Look! St Michael's Chapel!"

Brad shrugged. "Yeah, so?"

"That's where Jill and Carlos were heading. Hey, I hate to love you and leave you, but I'm going to see if they're there. I'll catch up. Just mark your doors and stuff if you change paths, okay?"

"You be careful, alright?"

Rachelle nodded and ran off towards the clock tower. Brad continued on the same road, walking down the middle of the street. It was getting on in the day, and the sky was already turning red as dusk approached. Brad knew he had to try and find Danielle before dusk, as it was around that time that the nastier of Umbrella's beasts showed their ugly faces. Just as he passed an alley, something careered into him from the side. Drawing his gun and firing, he looked in surprise as Danielle pulled her hands away from her head and looked at the wall behind her in surprise, a bullet hole in the bricks. She shook her head and looked at him.

"God damn I'm glad you can't aim when you're scared."

Brad ran over and hugged her.

"Alright.... Brad? I.... I sorta can't breathe."

Brad let go. "I thought you were gone for sure."

"Course not. The S.F.S. got me out, and the Smokies helped us with the Werewolf."

"Smokies helped you too? They helped me and Rachelle out of the warehouse. But I have no idea why."

"Daionera says that they were an 'unfortunate accident'. She had them in a cage. They broke out of the cage just before the S.F.S. busted in. They scared away Daionera. For a while I could have sworn that they were ready to finish what they started at the mansion, but they didn't, they just sat there and let the S.F.S. get me out. Daionera released the Werewolf on us, and Smokey took it on while we got out. It was O'Sullivan who shot at me," Danielle said, putting her hand on her left shoulder. "The damn bitch hit me, too."

Brad took a look. "Well, I hope Smokies got her. I don't know where they went after they got us out."

Danielle nodded. "Those cats aren't so bad after all. I guess the T-Virus didn't affect them as much."

Brad shrugged and started walking. "Rachelle made a detour to the clock tower to see if Jill and Carlos were there. We should wait for her to catch up."

Danielle looked up at the sky as the first stars shone out. "You know, don't you think it's awfully quiet in this part of town?"

"I think they're anticipating something."

"Maybe there's a B.O.W. in the area."

"I hope to God if there is, it's Smokies."

Danielle stood on the sidewalk and looked around. There was not a zombie in sight, but she still wasn't comfortable, due to the night. Brad paced in front of her.

"Perhaps there's somewhere safe we can crash."

Danielle shook her head. "Even if there was somewhere, we'd be surrounded by morning."

Brad looked up at the sky. "Can you give us a damn break, for crying out loud?!"

Suddenly there was a low growl from the shadows, as two familiar creatures melded out of the darkness. But this time they weren't very friendly looking. Danielle stood up slowly as Smokies slinked towards them, snarling.

"I think I just realised the extent of Smokies mutation.... And why it attacked us at the mansion and not here.... Night and day."

Just as she finished her sentence, the twin animals sprang at them, and Danielle ran for the door behind her, opening and slamming it behind Brad, just as Smokies hit it. They stopped on the door and began to prowl outside.

"Oh, God, please. Daybreak come!"

"Like a werewolf. Jekyl and Hyde."

Danielle nodded. "Right. Placid by day, bloodthirsty by night."

Brad shook his head. "Maybe if they're still around in the morning, we can catch them and use them to get out of the city?"

Danielle shrugged. "Perhaps. But we'd have to be careful, otherwise they may still attack us."

Brad nodded. "Good. We'll try to find somewhere we can contact the outside. That way, perhaps we can call someone who can come and get us."

Danielle sat down behind the counter of the shop they had run into. Brad came down beside her, putting his arm around her.

"You know, when this is over, I'm going to write a very firm letter to the head of Umbrella."

"Like that'll have any effect," Brad said with a laugh. Danielle shrugged and leaned on his shoulder, falling asleep within minutes.

Rachelle wandered down the street the next day, keeping her eyes open for anything extremely unusual, excluding the usual zombie or two. Then she turned a corner and saw a very interesting sight. Brad and Danielle, trying to round up two playful-looking mutant cats. Rachelle strolled over casually, checking her gun to make sure it was loaded.

"Well. Nice to see the child has truly grown out of all three... err, four of you."

Danielle laughed and looked down at the cat nearest to her. "You should try it Rachelle, it's a thrill. You don't know whether or not they want to kill you."

Rachelle shook her head. "You know, I think you put too much trust in those... things. Who knows what they're planning. In those twisted minds of theirs."

Brad clapped a collar around the first cat when it least expected it.

"We know exactly what to expect from them, Rachelle. At night, we cage them up because by night they become bloodthirsty Umbrella B.O.W.s and by day, they're just a pair of giant kittens with big sharp teeth and claws who just want to play."

"Play what? The 'Human Scratching Post Game'?"

Danielle laughed sarcastically and got the second cat. "Funny. No, we plan to use them to get out of the city."

"You do know that you'll have to kill them when you do get out, don't you?"

Danielle grinned. "I know someone who's very interested in Smokey1 & 2. I'm not after money, but I'm sure that McDoughal could do something with them."

Rachelle rolled her eyes. "Trust you to think of him when you look at them."

Danielle held the collar of the mutant cat. "You know Shellie, I'm really proud of the S.F.S.'s resourcefulness. They went looking for a company that specialised in fighting Umbrella, and found one. They now work as Bio-Counter field agents."

"You're not the captain anymore?"

"Not according to them. They wanted me to come back with them, but I said I had to find my friends. So they went back to Bio-Counter Labs without me," she said chirpily. Rachelle looked at her.

"They still in town?"

"They left yesterday afternoon."

Rachelle stamped her foot. "Damn! We've gotta find a way out. Oh yeah, reminds me. I found another office building that strikes interest. Almost zombie free... now. There's one particular room filled with comms equipment. It looks like Brad's alley, so I decided to find you guys, considering that some of the stuff in there really flipped me out."

Brad shrugged and struggled to hold Smokey still. Rachelle pointed to the cat.

"You should get a leash too, you know. Not for the cat, of course, for you."

Danielle reached over and clapped one over the catch on the collar. Rachelle sighed.

"You've thought of everything. What happens when it gets dark?"

"We shut them in a room, and make sure they can't get out."

Rachelle shook her head. "Dani, you're usually the one with your head screwed on properly, perhaps you can tell me where the sense is in this endeavour. Because I'm not seeing it. A door will not hold a B.O.W. Haven't we learnt that from the past?"

Brad shrugged. "Come on, just show us to this office."

Rachelle nodded and took the leash of the boisterous cat from Brad.

"Here. I can handle it better than you."

And she could. Danielle and Rachelle had an effect over Smokey. They put it down to memory. Rachelle led the way to the abandoned office block just down the road from where they were. She shrugged.

"It's not hard to get to the room, it's on the fifth floor."

They followed her inside and into the elevator. Rachelle hit the button, then immediately cocked her gun.

"I suggest you guys do the same."

She wasn't misconceived. As soon as the doors opened, a whole swarm of zombies came at them from the other side. Luckily though, with Brad and Danielle also firing upon them, they were down in no time. Rachelle tore some of her shirt and wrapped it around a fresh wound on her arm.

"Damn it. They got me."

Brad checked her. "You'll be alright, won't you?"

Rachelle shrugged. "I don't know. The virus is passed on through a bite, but I don't think we have to worry, I think it only matters if you're bitten by a zombie if it kills you, huh?"

"We might have to blow your head off, Shellie," Danielle sighed, mocking resent. "It's the only way to stop the process."

Rachelle groaned and walked out of the elevator. "You're a bitch, Danielle."

Brad laughed. "Tell us something we don't know."

Rachelle led them down the hall. Danielle cheerily kicked the dead zombies in the head as she walked past, beaning one of them so hard that she knocked its head off. Danielle kicked the removed head at Brad.

"Zombie soccer!"

Brad turned around and kicked the head with its gaping, bloody mouth away from him.

"Dani, you must be insane."

"Danielle's been insane for years, Brad."

Danielle started walking again, forgetting about the head. Rachelle opened a door a little way down the hall.

"Here we are."

Brad looked around. "This is the telecommunications building, isn't it?"

Danielle jolted as though remembering something, but didn't say anything. Rachelle nodded. 

"Right. I figured I might be able to find something we can contact the outside world with, so that's why I stopped off here...." She checked her watch. "Lunch hour. Heh. I wonder if anyone plans to visit us for lunch."

Danielle shrugged. "Who knows. Hey, let's try and get some of this stuff working."

Brad nodded and sat down in one of the chairs. The room was filled with security monitors and comms equipment. He hit the power switch for the radio. Nothing happened. He flicked it on and off a few times.

"Hey Brad, I think the comms breaker is gone."

"What?"

"Look at this," Rachelle said, pointing to a black computer monitor. The cursor was at the DOS prompt, but above it was a list of recent commands in white text. Brad stood up and walked over.

"Let's see. Radio equipment operated. Broadcast attempted. Radio equipment failed. Breaker dysfunctional. Radio equipment attempted operation. Breaker inoperative. Radio equipment attempted operation. Breaker inoperative........And so on." He shook his head. "Someone's going to have to go down and reset the breaker."

Rachelle shook her head. "Count me out. I went down for a look earlier and got chased right back out by a Hunter. Besides. With that wound on my arm, I can't handle my gun."

"Well I'm not going, I'm lucky I'm still walking straight."

They both turned and looked at Danielle who was sitting in a chair nearby, bringing up maps and floor plans for the building on a terminal. She didn't look up.

"Figures. Alright I'll go, but make sure you keep me wired, okay," she stood up and adjusted a headset she had found. She tossed a small radio to them. Brad caught it. "Because I don't have eyes in the back of my head and I don't like the unfair idea of being attacked from behind."

She hit print on the terminal and the heavy-duty printer in the corner printed two copies of the map that was on the screen. She handed one to Rachelle.

"Keep me posted, okay? Catch ya."

She pulled her gun from its holster and crept cautiously out the door. Brad turned to the monitors.

"Okay, let's get cracking."

Danielle turned the next corner gun-first as she cautiously made her way through the lower levels of the building. Somewhere down the hall she could hear the clicking of claws and she began to wish she hadn't left the Smokies with Brad and Rachelle. In fact, the thought had never even occurred to her to take one of them with her. She froze in her tracks when she heard the familiar sucking sound that the most recently discovered monster, the Drain Deimos and its other form, the Brain Deimos, made. Checking the roof and walls before she walked any further, the absence of the creature she knew was in the hall somewhere made her more anxious.

Suddenly it sprang out of an air duct above her head. Flailing backwards, she fell on her back, shooting up at the monster. It dropped from the roof with a screech and fell on her, dead. Quickly scrambling to her feet and kicking away its slimy body, she let her heart rate return to normal and leaned against the wall. The receiver on her headset crackled.

"Dani! You alright girl?"

Danielle nodded and looked up into the camera near her head, saluting to show she was fine.

"Yeah, I'm alright. God damn. Have you ever touched one of those rotten bugs?"

"Never had the displeasure."

Danielle nodded and kicked it, walking past. "You don't wanna." She tapped a door just next to her. "Can you see me, Shellie?"

"Yeah."

"What's this room?"

There was a pause as Rachelle checked the map she had. "Ahhh, I believe that should be the maintenance room."

"Is that what I'm looking for?"

"Sure is."

She undid the latch and pushed open the door with her gun. Quickly springing to the side, she sidestepped two Cerberus dogs that were in the room. They yelped and jumped for her, but she had them both down almost instantly. She wasted no time getting in the room and closing the door behind her. The maintenance room was well lit, and she could see the breakers from the door.

"You're on a catwalk, am I right?"

"Sure are. There's two sets of stairs at either end and they lead down to the control panels. There's four panels."

"Go down and check them. I'm pretty sure it's the third one, but they should have their names on them."

Danielle walked down the stairs to the platform with the breakers. Underneath the grating she was standing on, wires and cables were intertwined, leading from the breaker boxes and out of the room. Approaching the third breaker, she nodded.

"I reckon it would be the third breaker box. It's the only one with the insides torn out of it."

"You're kidding. Is it beyond help?"

Danielle shook her head and looked around for the security camera. She found it at an angle just above the breakers. She waved into it.

"Hi mum."

Rachelle laughed. "I see you, Dani. Can you read the fuses?"

Danielle ran her finger down the side of the box where the names were written just opposite their corresponding fuses.

"Let's see. Satellite Controls: West Wing, Satellite Controls: East Wing. Telecommunications, Internet Communications, Global Communications, Radio Communications, Visual Data Archives, Security Network... the others are illegible."

"That's alright. The breaker that needs to be reset is the Radio Communications fuse. You know how?"

"Yeah... but there's a problem."

"Don't tell me it's screwed."

"Well, it's not screwed... it's missing."

Rachelle went silent.

"Shellie? You still there?"

".....Yeah. Dani, can you see the fuse anywhere?"

Danielle looked around and shook her head. "No. I'll bet one of those dogs tore it out. I'll go and check them."

"Be careful, Dani."

Danielle climbed up the metal stairs again and back onto the catwalk. Opening the door slowly, she stepped outside. She looked at the dogs. It seemed obvious that they were the ones who messed up the breaker box, as their snouts were charred from electric shocks. Leaning over them, she inspected each dog. The headset crackled again as Rachelle laughed contemptibly.

"You've gotta be kiddin'. I'll bet they ate it."

Danielle shook her head. "No, I don't think they even busted the breaker. The damage is too... centered, to be from these dogs. If they did it, the whole box would have been smashed up because they would only have gotten small areas at a time. They've probably just been sniffing the cords and got shocked. The damage on the box was from a single hit. Something else took the fuse."

"We'll have to find another one."

Danielle stood back up. "Good luck. You need a specific fuse for it to work."

"You said there was also a telecommunications fuse. Will that work?"

"It may, but I doubt it."

"Try it."

Danielle shrugged and went back in. Approaching the breaker box once again, she removed the Telecommunications fuse and replaced it in the Radio Communications slot. Hitting the reset switch on the breaker, the connection sparked and spat at first, but then the generator started running and the lights on the box came back up. Danielle looked up at the camera.

"Great job! The radio's working!"

"You're the one who suggested using the other comms fuse, Shellie."

"Yeah well, you're the one who went down there to fix it. I salute you, Dani!"

"People seem to be doing that a lot lately," Danielle smiled up into the camera, but suddenly she whirred around and looked into the shadows beneath the catwalk. She stepped back against the generator.

"Dani? What's up?"

"Ahhh, my pulse rate and blood pressure."

"Dani? What is it?"

"I... I don't know."

Danielle looked up at the hanging light above the breaker box. Reaching up and pulling it down a bit, she flashed it into the cavity under the metal catwalk. The creature hiding in the shadows made a futile attempt to cover its face with its spindly arms and screeched as she shone the light on it. It was a lanky creature, not similar in frame to any of the monsters created by Umbrella so far. It had long fangs protruding from the bottom jaw of its beakish snout that were almost as long as its needle-like claws. Its skin clung so tight to its body you could see its bones, it had flailing arms and crooked legs and a short, bony tail and a longish, vulture-like neck. Danielle backed up as it stepped out of the shadows and turned to camera, spraying acid from its mouth over the lens. Then it turned to her.

"The monitor went blank! Did you see that thing?!"

Brad nodded, already untying Smokies. The twin cats were agitatedly pulling at their leashes. Rachelle took one of them, and the cats practically dragged them out the door and down the hall. Rachelle put her weight into keeping them under control and checked her watch.

"It's 6:30. We have to be fast, these two are going to turn in about an hour."

"They went docile about quarter to 8 this morning. My guess is twelve hours."

"An hour and 15 minutes then."

Brad pulled hard to keep Smokey1 from pulling him off his feet while he ran along.

"You know, I'd bet that we could ride them."

"That's getting a little bit too adventurous."

They came to the stairwell and ran down the flights of stairs till they got to the sub level. Rachelle opened the door and practically flew out, being almost dragged along by Smokey2. Rachelle reigned it in and tried to run alongside the cat. The faster she went though, the faster and stronger Smokey pulled.

"We've got 45 minutes left before they go!" Rachelle called back to Brad.

"These two are really excited about something!"

They turned the next corner quickly. Rachelle almost tripped on the body of the bug-creature that Smokey merely leapt over. The door to the maintenance room was clearly marked by the bodies of the Cerberus dogs out the front. Smokey bashed the door in with help from its other half, not giving Rachelle or Brad a chance to show them that using the handle tends to be an easier way of getting in. As soon as they got through the door, they ran down the stairs to the lower level, where they began to smell the floor near the breaker boxes. The two animals stopped and checked the floor. Rachelle looked up at the camera.

"Look. That's why the camera went off."

Brad looked up at the melted lens and nodded. Rachelle watched the cats carefully, shaking her head.

"It's no good. She's not here."

Suddenly the creature they saw before the monitor went off sprang from the shadows with a squeal and went for the first cat, spewing acid from its mouth. Smokey1 ran to dodge to the right, but the creature slashed out with huge claws and tore deep gouges in Smokey1's side. The cat jumped away squealing, and came at the monster with a limping gait. Smokey1 leapt at it like a panther and clawed at it. The creature spat acid up into its face and the cat fell back, clawing at its face in a frenzy to get the burning acid away. The second cat leapt to its aid, gripping the back of the monster's neck in its jaws and biting hard. The monster rammed it backwards into one of the breaker boxes; the shock causing Smokey2 to let go.

The monster ran at the first cat again and rammed it onto its side. The monster immediately came at the cat, biting at its underbelly and clamping its jaws around the tender part of its stomach, sending its huge tusks into the cat's white fur, staining it red and the beast tore its head upwards, taking a huge section of Smokey's flesh with it. The monster continued to tear at Smokey. Rachelle ran down onto the next level, firing at the beast.

"Get the fuck away from it! Get the God damn fuck away!"

The beast raised its blood-covered head and snarled at her, fresh blood dripping from its tusks and talon-like claws. It had puncture wounds along its neck and gashes in its chest, exposing the bones beneath, like so many of the zombies they had seen so far. Its eyes were like black holes in its head. Rachelle noticed something else, too.

On its chest and along the side of its head were bullet wounds, as well as charred flesh. She knew this was the monster they had seen go for Danielle before the monitor went blank. She realised what a mistake she had made by interrupting the horrible monstrosity, but it did little to phase her. She aimed her gun directly at its hissing face.

"You killed my cat."

She pulled the trigger and the bullet hit the beast's head right in the snout. It faltered backwards, but came back to a standing position and charged at her, head down. She fired again twice, before she was dragged aside by Brad, who had run down and managed to pull her away. The monster missed and turned to take another charge.

Luckily by now, the second cat had recovered, and took the monster from the side before it could charge again. The cat was enraged, and continued to relentlessly claw at the monster. Suddenly it hissed and squealed in pain, and the monster gave one last twitch, and lay still. Limping slightly, the cat came away from it and hazily wandered around in a circle, as though confused. Rachelle looked at Brad.

"Okay, Mr Scientist, what happens now that one half is dead?"

"The other half is probably very open to anything.... It's like losing half of your brain. Smokey will probably be somewhat different now, perhaps even reversed."

"You mean hostile by day, friendly by night?"

"Or even not hostile at all. This could work out alright, except for the fact that we just lost half of a great asset."

Rachelle nodded and walked over to the body of Smokey1. "You know, I feel somewhat sad."

Brad nodded and kept his eyes on the second animal, which had now dropped to the ground, watching Rachelle and its dead half with jaded eyes. Brad shook his head.

"I think someone else is a little more upset, you know."

Rachelle looked up at the cat and shook her head. "I thought Umbrella B.O.W.s didn't retain feelings or memory."

"Haven't you seen enough of these two to think that maybe something went wrong with the experiment and so they aren't like other B.O.W.s?"

"Yeah maybe, but all the same."

Brad looked around. "That reminds me. Didn't we come down here to rescue someone?"

Rachelle stood up and left the body of Smokey1, walking over to the other cat and kneeling down next to it.

"I didn't see her when I came in, did you?"

Brad looked around and shone a torch into the cavity under the catwalk. There was nothing.

"She's not here."

Smokey rolled over and stood up slowly, padding cautiously over to something on the floor. There was a shred of fabric on the floor, in a pool of strange liquid. Rachelle came over and picked it up. The clear substance on the floor stuck to it, and Rachelle had to break it away. Brad made a face.

"What is that shit?"

Rachelle looked down at it, and waved Smokey away when it tried to lick the puddle.

"Don't do that Smokey, you don't know what it is."

Brad crouched down and touched it, pulling his finger away in disgust, the goo sticking to his finger like stringy glue. Rachelle shook her head.

"I dunno, it looks like some sort of secretive resin."

Brad looked at the dead monster that had attacked them. "Secreted from that?"

Rachelle shrugged. "Who knows. Probably."

Brad looked at the fabric. "What about that?"

Rachelle held it up. It was a piece of beige cotton. 

"Danielle's overcoat."

Brad held the leash tediously, hoping to God that Smokey didn't turn on them. Rachelle opened the door and walked into the corridor.

"Great. A one way passage."

Brad nodded and continued on. Rachelle stopped at a door along the side of the hall.

"You keep going. I'm going to check this room."

Brad shrugged and walked on, gripping the leash tightly. The cat at his side suddenly went ballistic, charging forward full force at the door ahead of them. Brad wasted no time in throwing open the door and letting the cat drag him through. They had been using it as a tracker, and now it seemed to have found something. It was late, and Smokey still hadn't gone hostile, and they were thankful for it. Brad sighed and pulled on the leash.

"Come on Smokey, calm yourself buddy."

The cat stopped at the next door. Brad wrapped the leather leash around his hand a few times as he opened the door. Smokey followed slowly, her head down as they walked into the room. Brad sighed with relief as he laid eyes on the figure standing still as stone at the end of the hall. Brad loosened his hold on the leash as he took a step forward and patted Smokey's head.

"Good girl, Smokey."

The woman in the minorly tattered and stained overcoat didn't turn around. But she lifted her custom gun and cocked it where he could see. Brad watched with concern. Suddenly she spun around and aimed the gun directly at his head, her overcoat flying out at the same time. Brad could only stare in shock.

Danielle glared at him in that stone cold stare she reserved for those she was about to annihilate. But those times she was armed with a voice. This time she was armed with a very powerful firearm that was loaded and cocked.

"Dan... Danielle? Wh... what are you doing?" Brad asked shakily, holding up his free hand. Danielle didn't move a muscle. Smokey growled lowly and glared at her. Danielle shifted her aim to the cat and it slinked backwards slightly, still growling. Danielle returned her aim to Brad.

"Danie-"

"Shut up and get against the wall, Vickers!" she spat, taking a step forward and thrusting the barrel of her gun towards him. Brad jumped and quickly stepped back, his back to the wall. Danielle didn't move.

"Danielle, what's wrong with y-"

"I said zip it, Bradley!"

She had never called him that before, come to think of it, he couldn't remember anyone but his parents calling him Bradley, and only ever when he was in trouble. Brad raised his hands, still holding Smokey's leash.

"I know why you managed to get those cats under control, you work for Umbrella, don't you!" Danielle accused, pressing the barrel of her weapon against his chest. Brad was terrified now, and she could tell. She leaned right forward.

"Bang," she whispered in his ear, and backed up, a sinister smile crossing her face. Brad shook his head.

"Danielle, you're not well. I think maybe you've contracted the virus. You have to get help."

Danielle stopped smiling and cocked her head to the side. "Virus? What? This virus?"

She reached into the inside pocket of her coat and produced a sealed vial filled with some sort of blue substance. Brad looked at it in shock.

"Where did you get-"

"You obviously know what this is, right? This isn't just any virus, no. This is the Z-Virus. This is why those monsters have been chasing us around the city."

"What are you talking about?! You're insane!"

Danielle laughed slightly and rubbed the side of her head with her gun.

"Aren't we all?"

"Where'd you get that vial?"

Danielle pointed the gun at him. "From Annette Birkin. It is the prototype specimen of the Z-Virus; the most powerful virus created by Umbrella to this day. Annette got in my path yesterday. She caught that pretty purple coloured virus and wasn't happy about it. Of course, she didn't tell me this, it was my assumption. But I talked her out of the vial and gave her the vaccine to that pretty purple virus."

"Purple?"

"G-Virus. Anyway, as I said I organised a trade. Annette was very interested in the G-Vaccine I had and I was equally interested in this new virus. You can imagine."

Brad shook his head disbelievingly. "You made a deal with Umbrella?"

Danielle shrugged. "So? I got what I wanted."

Brad looked away. "Danielle, come on."

He looked at her and dared to take a step forward. Danielle pointed the gun at him viciously and edged her finger towards the trigger.

"I wouldn't try anything Vickers, I will not hesitate to shoot you."

Brad reached out and touched her arm. "Danielle, come on. Trust me. I'm not with Umbrella. You know me... I'm not like that."

Danielle stepped back and kept her gun trained at him, but something in her eyes changed, as if she was slowly becoming aware again.

"Danielle, put down the gun."

She shook her head quickly. "No, you're trying to trick me."

In a last effort to get her to calm down, Brad carefully grabbed the hand she held the gun in and pushed it away.

"Calm down... just, get a hold of yourself."

.....In the room down the hall, Rachelle heard a gunshot and instinctively bolted out the door and down the hall......

Brad looked up as Rachelle came through the door. Rachelle looked over at Danielle, who was looking down at the ground, her smoking gun pointed at the roof. She slowly dropped to her knees, and dropped her gun on the floor with a clatter. Rachelle turned to Brad.

"What happened?"

Brad shook his head. "I think maybe we should see if we can find some sort of countermeasure for the G-Virus."

Rachelle looked at him in shock. "What are you getting at?"

Brad shook his head. "Danielle's either going insane, or she's somehow got the virus."

Rachelle shook her head. "Dear God."

Brad walked over and put his arm around Danielle's shoulder. "It's alright... We'll get something for you."

Danielle closed her eyes and shook her head. "You go find Annette Birkin then. I'm not going anywhere."

Rachelle nodded and mouthed 'I'll be back'. She took the leash for Smokey and led her out of the room. Brad looked down at Danielle and held her closer.

"Don't die on me."

Rachelle ran down through the building until she couldn't go down any further. She turned to Smokey as they ran.

"Okay. Seeing as you're on our side now, I will teach you some Umbrella logic. Nearly every conventional building in this damn city has a path or tunnel that leads to an Umbrella lab, such is the irony of it all. The path down is usually some sort of stairwell or security elevator programmed to do certain things in times of emergency. This is what we're looking for. So Smokey, let's see you win my trust."

The cat, as if understanding, pulled hard on the leash and dragged her through the corridors until they reached a service elevator. It was out of order.

"Well done Smokey, now what?"

She pulled her inside and nuzzled at the buttons. Rachelle shrugged and, to humour the animal, pressed one of the floors. The elevator, to her surprise, started to move down. It jolted and then the doors opened. Rachelle laughed and shook her head, turning to the animal.

"As I said, Smokes, such is the irony of it all."

_Will they get out of __Raccoon__City__ in time to save their necks or will Umbrella finally defeat them?_

_Can Rachelle get back before it's too late?_

_Will they ever see Jill and Carlos again?_

_Wait and see in Chapter 10: Escape From Raccoon…_


	12. 10: Escape From Raccoon

Chapter 10: Escape From Raccoon

Brad looked up as Rachelle flung open the door to the comms room, looking a mess and a very tired-looking Smokey alongside her.

"What happened to you?"

Rachelle slumped in a chair and handed a vial of strange coloured liquid to Brad.

"She'd better bloody appreciate this and not die later on, because after the trouble I went through to get that, I'll bet Smokey doesn't even want to hear the word Umbrella again."

Brad nodded and administered the vaccine to Danielle, who was lying unconscious on one of the desks lining the side of the room. Brad brushed her hair back and turned to Rachelle.

"Nothing to do but wait."

Rachelle nodded and looked at the monitors, some were blacked out because of the damage done to breaker 2 in the maintenance room during the battle between Smokey1& 2 and the monster, which they had now named the 'Rhino', due to its tusks and tendencies to charge. Brad walked over to the controls and tried the radio switch again. This time it worked. They were met with white noise. Brad adjusted the wavelength slightly, and picked up the receiver.

"Hello? Is anyone out there picking me up?"

"Hello!?......is this?"

"This is Brad Vickers. I'm calling out of Raccoon City where we have a crisis at hand. We need assistance!"

".....rad?......'re......live?.....there........any..............ith........you?"

"Sorry? You're breaking up! Who am I speaking to?"

"Can't.......ou...........nise.......voice?..........Barry!"

"Barry? Aren't you in Europe?"

"......Came bac.........elp..........you.......trouble."

Brad looked up at Rachelle and grinned. "Barry! Where are you?"

"In a........copter..........wards.........City..........eed a lift?"

"In a what? A helicopter? Where?"

"Head...........Racco.......City."

"Here? God damn Barry, you're a saviour!"

"Yeah....eah.........out.......n.........rooft...........in.......hour."

"You want our location?"

"It.......ould.......elp."

"The telecommunications building."

"Right.......on.........oof.........60......nutes."

"An hour? Sure thing!" He set down the radio and turned to Rachelle. "We have an hour to be on the rooftop. Barry's coming to the rescue." 

Suddenly the transmission light blipped. Brad curiously turned it on.

"Attention all U.B.C.S supervisors. Mission terminated. Return immediately to your rendezvous points. Test site will be eliminated at 0600 hours. Repeat. Mission terminated. Return to your rendezvous points. Test site will be eliminated at dawn."

Brad looked up. "U.B.C.S? They can't possibly mean...."

Danielle stirred and tried to sit up. She rubbed her head and turned to him.

"I... they're blowing the city... at dawn."

"Annette was really intent upon reporting to Umbrella, but I met her in an abandoned shop not long before I met up with you, Brad, and convinced her that they were in the wrong, by using her family as a means of emotional rope. Not to mention the fact that she was a little delirious and not thinking straight, I managed to get her to give me the Z-Sample for safe keeping. I really didn't want to have just left her there, but she said she'd find her own way out of town, and thanks for the vaccine. However, I just couldn't wave goodbye. I ended up convincing her to meet me in this building."

Rachelle listened intently as Danielle explained what had really gone on when she met Annette Birkin earlier on. Brad kept her standing as they quickly walked along the halls to the rooftop door. Rachelle shook her head.

"Annette is still an Umbrella scientist, so I don't trust her."

Danielle, in a means of biting back, sneered at her. "What do you call Richard, then? Chopped liver?"

Rachelle glared at her, but shook her head at the slight reference as to what happened. Danielle stopped them as they came to the door.

"I do warn you though, Annette Birkin is very... well..."

Rachelle shrugged. "I sort of do know Annette... she wasn't very much of anything but jittery though."

"She can be the exact opposite," she pushed open the door slowly and walked inside. "Annette?"

The woman turned slowly and looked at her. She shook her head.

"I... I've been...."

She collapsed to her knees. Danielle ran over.

"Are you alright?"

Annette shook her head. Danielle put an arm around her shoulder and helped her stand. Annette tried to push away, but when she almost fell, let herself be led out of the room. Brad and Rachelle eyed her suspiciously. Danielle nodded.

"Come on. We've gotta get out of here." 

They nodded and continued on to the rooftop. When they came to the door, Brad turned the handle and gasped. He rattled it harder and kicked at the steel door.

"No! Goddammit no!"

Rachelle could hear the chopper approaching outside.

"He's going to leave! This was our last chance at escape! No!"

Danielle stood quiet for a minute, her hand in her pocket. Suddenly she found what she was looking for and pulled it out by the cotton thread. The skeleton key that Thomas had given her. She took a few shaky steps towards the door and tried the key. Rattling it a bit, she smiled when the lock clicked. Brad looked at her.

"Where'd you get that?"

Danielle smiled. "Thomas said it might come in handy. I'm glad he gave it to me."

Brad grinned and opened the door. Suddenly Rachelle turned around.

"Do you hear something?"

Brad looked at the door at the end of the hall. Just as he turned around, it started to pound. Brad threw open the rooftop door.

"Come on! I don't exactly want to find out what that is."

Just as they got through the door, the other caved in and, standing in the doorway, was the Werewolf. It snarled and charged for them, crashing through the door and onto the roof. Just above them, Barry was circling in the chopper. His voice came over the loudspeakers.

"Guys! I can't set her down with that thing there. You'll have to take care of it first!"

The Werewolf instantly turned to Danielle. She stepped backwards and cocked her gun. But Brad acted first.

"Hey! Hey! Over here!"

The Werewolf turned at the diversion and ran at Brad. Rachelle shot at it, but it was too strong and came right at him without even flinching. This was the part of the plan that Brad hadn't thought out properly. The Werewolf reared onto its hind legs and brought its claws down hard against his chest. Brad fell back, breathing hard. Rachelle ran over to draw the Werewolf's attention again, leading it away from the injured man. Annette pulled a gun from inside her lab coat and aimed shakily at the giant dog. Danielle was a little slow to catch on, but when she realised what was happening, she was quick to act. Pulling the lock back on her gun, she fired at the Werewolf. Annette turned to her.

"The monster is after the sample I gave you! Throw it over the edge!"  

Danielle nodded and pulled a vial from her pocket and waved it in the air.

"Hey! Hey you! I've got what you want right here! Come and get it!"

The giant beast turned and ran for her. At the last minute Danielle stepped aside, and the Werewolf went toppling over the edge of the building. It was impaled upon a girder which was poking out of the rubble. Rachelle ran over and grabbed her shoulder.

"Great job, Dani! We busted it!"

Danielle didn't hear her. She stood up and ran over to Brad, who was bleeding badly from the wounds in his chest. Brad looked up at her.

"Hey, good work. You should go now, Barry's waiting for you."

Danielle shook her head. "I can't leave a friend behind."

Brad gripped her hand. "Hey.... You know I won't last, Dani.... Just... go. It's been fun."

Danielle couldn't stop herself from crying. Rachelle stood by Barry's side, fighting tears also. Barry was shaking his head. Smokey had lowered her head, her ears drooped. Danielle looked down at Brad.

"Brad, I... I can't just leave."

"Sure you can.... Just jump in the chopper... and go."

"No Brad... you have to come. I can't go."

"I'm not going to have this... conversation with you... because God knows... I won't."

Danielle smiled. "You never were the one to fight back."

Brad smiled and coughed. "Yeah.... Just go.... Go on. Go... and laugh.... Don't get... upset. And don't... forget about... me...."

He closed his eyes. Danielle shook her head.

"They were the last words that... I heard... that time."

Rachelle put her hand on her shoulder. "Come on Dani. There's nothing you can do. He's gone."

Danielle stood up, closing her eyes and nodding. Rachelle helped Annette to her feet and got her up into the helicopter. Barry ushered Danielle into the chopper sadly, allowing Smokey to jump in also. Danielle looked out the window as they flew away.

"I won't forget."

The chopper came down slowly as Carlos waved the lit flares in the air to signal it. Jill walked up slowly behind him as the chopper set down. Carlos jumped in quickly, reaching down to help Jill up, and closed the door. Carlos leaned back in the chair and breathed a sigh of relief as the helicopter took off. Jill leaned forward towards the pilot.

"Thank you. You saved us!"

The pilot grinned. "Well I couldn't just leave you there to die."

Jill squinted at the pilot. "I... Is it you?"

Barry nodded. "You ready to finish this?"

Jill leaned back and smiled, leaning towards the window. She looked out as the glowing form sailed silently across the sky.

"It's coming!"

Barry nodded, looking at his watch. "Yeah. It's the end."

The missile coursed into the center of the city, impacting in a silent, bright blast. Suddenly the helicopter shook as the after-blast hit the chopper. Jill cried out and grabbed at the side of the seat as the chopper sailed forwards and regained its balance. Jill closed her eyes and sighed.

"That's it, Umbrella is going down."

Carlos looked at her. "Hey? You wanna bring down an entire global enterprise with just us?"

Barry looked at him in the rear-view mirror. "You're quite welcome not to join us."

"Barry!" Jill scolded, leaning forward. "Carlos is on our side!"

Barry nodded. "Yeah, sure. Fine. Sorry Carlos. Name's Barry. Barry Burton. S.T.A.R.S."

Carlos grinned. "Great to meet you. Carlos Oliviera, corporal of Umbrella's Bio-Hazard Countermeasure Service. Ex-corporal, to make that up-to-date."

Barry nodded. "It'd be a problem if you still were, buddy. I guess you'd pretty much understand we don't like Umbrella very much."

Carlos agreed. "Same here. But I'm just a mercenary, I never had anything to do with the company, I was hired for this mission."

Jill smiled. "Rescuing the civilians? I think you did a pretty good job."

"Yeah. How many times did I save your ass in there?"

Barry laughed. "Well then. I can't say I'm not impressed, but I can't say I trust you completely. However, if you made it past Jill, I guess I can let it rest."

Jill nodded. "Thanks Barry."

Barry looked up in the mirror again. "Hey! Captain! We goin' in the right direction?"

"If you're going nor-north-east from Raccoon City, or what remains of it, then yes you are."

Jill turned around and looked behind her. "Danielle! Rachelle! I'm surprised to see you, Annette.... And a... great, big cat of some sort. Are you sure that's not dangerous?"

Smokey gave a dissatisfied and indignant miaow as if in some kind of protest. Carlos spun around too. 

"Hey! Good to see you made it Danielle!"

Danielle looked up and smiled. "Yeah... you too. Nice to see you can do what you're told."

"Hey?"

"I told you to make it out alive."

Carlos laughed and nodded. "Heh, yeah. I guess, huh? Hey, where's... the other guy?"

Danielle looked away. 

"Didn't make it," Rachelle said quietly. Jill looked down.

"Hey, I'm sorry guys.... He... he was my friend too."

Carlos shook his head. "You know, I think Umbrella has it coming to 'em."

"Damn right they do," Barry called back. Danielle looked up. Annette looked up hazily. She was slowly becoming a little more light-headed. Danielle looked at her.

"What did you say, Annette?"

Annette shook her head. "Ask me again when I can understand you better."

"Yeah, well, I'll make sure I stick it to them. They'll be running out of America with their tails between their legs calling for their mommies when I'm done."

Rachelle turned to her. "We have a fair bit of time before we reach Bio-Counter Labs, I only heard about it from the news.... Would you mind telling us what happened in Chicago?"

Danielle sighed. "As much as I don't want to... I guess so.... At the time, I was the Detective Sergeant of the S.U......


	13. 11: Memory of the Beginning

Chapter 11: Memory of the Beginning

November 10th, 1997......

Just another usual day at the office. Martin, my partner, was an African-American cop, and had just brought in another loony who was ranting and raving about something that's just happened in the neighbourhood. As I said, nothing unusual.

("I remember Martin's name.... He was mentioned as one of the terrorists who was involved in the incident," Jill claimed.

"That's right, Martin Heranger. He was my partner in crime. And a good friend too.")

Anyway, I stood up and went over to see what it was all about. He sat the guy down in a chair in the office. The guy was stark raving mad. At least that's what I thought at the time.

"I swear on my momma's grave! It was huge! A monster with sharp fangs man!"

Martin looked at me and raised an eyebrow. I shook my head and sat down across from the guy. Martin handed me a file, and I flipped through it, glancing up at the guy. He looked around quickly, shaking, absolutely terrified. I kept the file open as I spoke to him.

"So, Mr Franks. Jake. Can I call you that, Jake?"

He nodded. "I swear officer. I saw it! It killed the homeless guy down on 34th!"

I looked back down at the file. "You have a record, Jake. Can you tell me what for? Or do you want me to remind you?"

"What? You think I killed the guy?!"

I closed the file. "We'd believe you if you could show us proof."

"I'll show you proof! I... I have a tag!"

Martin passed me a piece of green plastic. The tag had a logo and a number.

"Umbrella, huh? They're harmless. This is probably just from one of the monkeys they use to test their products."

Martin nodded. "Trust us Jake, Umbrella ain't up to nuthin'. We checked them out only the other day."

"Why?"

"That's classified information, Mr Franks," I said, turning the tag in my hand. The number of the tag said T-023. I shook my head. "Maybe you'll feel safer in lock-up for tonight, Jake?"

He looked at me. "No way, man. I gotta get out of this town. Freaky shit is goin' on here!"

I shrugged. "Listen mate. You're either shittin' yourself or you're yankin' our chains. What'll it be?"

"You don't believe me? Run a search on that lab! There's some big shit goin' down! I swear! They're makin' monsters in that joint!"

I rubbed my forehead with my hand as Martin lifted him to his feet and led him out.

"Hey! Zeik! Take this guy and file his story, would ya?"

"Sure thing!"

Martin came back in. "How many?"

"10. I dunno Marty. Maybe we should check them out again."

Martin shook his head and grinned. "You're not seriously startin' to believe those nutcases, are ya?"

"There's just that little fraction of truth in everyone's story. All I'm saying is we should check them out again. Maybe we overlooked something. Or maybe they weren't showing us something."

"You saw everything, Dani. The only thing they're makin' in there is the Greenies pissed. Don't worry. They're just an international enterprise. Nuthin' to their names except an animal cruelty investigation years ago."

I laughed. "Animal cruelty. We know they do it. But we couldn't charge them, now could we."

"Nah. And we all know they employ the legal system. Look if it'll make you happy, I'll get another warrant. It'll piss off the chief and it'll piss off Umbrella, but if it'll satisfy you."

I smiled. "Thanks Marty."

November 15th 1997...........

"As I'm sure you were told officers, last time you graced us with your untimely visit, we here at Umbrella are completely concerned with making the consumers happy," she added with a laugh, "Not monsters."

I smiled as best I could and nodded. "We're sorry to continually inconvenience you, Doctor. But the department requires that we investigate any continued complaint. Not that there's anything wrong with your company, of course."

The scientist who greeted us in the lobby of Umbrella's Chicago office-laboratory nodded.

"Well, no sense in standing here and talking about it, let's get it underway."

Martin turned to her as she led us into the hallway. "Our warrant allows us to investigate anything that catches our eye that may be worth investigating."

She nodded. "I understand Sergeant Heranger."

I looked at her. Apparently she had flown in from another laboratory in the country to 'handle' us. I couldn't help wonder why they would be so intent upon a particular person guiding us around the premises. 

"Now officers, what we do have in development here is classified, so I do ask you to please keep it undisclosed."

I nodded. It was a fair request. She opened the door at the end of the hall and showed us in.

(Annette leaned back. "Just a quick question, did you find out the name of the scientist?"

Danielle nodded. "....Yeah.... Why?"

"Who was it?"

"I was just getting to that.")

"So, why were you flown in to take care of us, Dr Birkin?"

Dr Birkin crossed her arms. "I know the most about what is going on here in Chicago, as well as my husband, but he is awfully busy in our Raccoon City branch."

I knew she wasn't giving us the whole story. My suspicions had been roused, and I thought that perhaps Annette Birkin had really only been asked to handle us, because she was the one who could cover up best. Spared no expense on our behalf. Dr Birkin looked at me.

"Is there something you'd like to know about, Detective? I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have."

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do have something I'd like to ask you Dr Birkin."

"Fire away."

I pulled a folded sheet of paper from inside my jacket and read through it.

"This is a written record of a conversation with a witness who claims that creatures bearing ID tags with your company's logo on them have been killing people in the slums. It's not the first, as you may know, and every one of these people comes in, terrified and panic-stricken. Do you have anything you could say to explain these occurrences?"

Dr Birkin went with the flow, as if expecting the question.  "What's to say that these so-called 'witnesses' aren't killing the people themselves and blaming the company for some reason?"

I raised an eyebrow, and Martin laughed. 

"Heh. If you want Detective Lanza to understand you, you'll have to tell her this way. Dani. What the good doctor is saying is this; how do we have a bloody clue that the Greenies aren't offing the deroes to make a story about Umbrella?"

I shook my head and waved him away. "Well, Dr Birkin-"

"You can call me Annette."

"Very well," I shrugged, "Annette, can you tell me about these? The forensics did some DNA tests on them, and found them to be contaminated with an as yet unknown bacillus specimen."

I showed her a series of evidence bags containing six different coloured ID tags. A flash of panic shot through her eyes. She stared at the tags as if trying to identify the specimens they came from, but I was certain she was calculating the situation, and she soon came out with an answer.

"They must have come from the animals in the Keeping Room. We've had a few of the specimens escape recently," she told us hazily. I looked at Martin.

"We weren't told about any 'Keeping Room' last time we were here."

Annette had gained her composure now. "They mustn't have thought it of any importance to the investigation. I'd be pleased to show you that there is nothing going on in the labs below us that is in any way illegal or 'God-playing'. We're not making monsters, you'll see that."

I was sure we would.

Annette led us quickly through the halls towards the elevator that led down. She seemed jittery now. Opening the elevator with her key card, we stepped inside.

"Well officers, I'll be showing you the Keeping Room first. There's nothing in there in any way unusual."

I remained skeptical, of both Annette and the loonies that had given their reports. I wasn't going to believe anyone until I was sure I had evidence. However, Annette's behaviour was too panicky to say that Umbrella wasn't hiding anything. The elevator stopped about five floors down. I remembered visiting the other floors last time we were here. Obviously the scientist who took us around last time didn't have access to the lower levels. Either that, or he was hiding it. Annette let us off first.

"This is the first of our special laboratories. In these labs, we test our newest products."

"On animals, I'd say," Martin cut in. Annette was becoming uncomfortable, it was in her eyes. We were backing her into a corner that she didn't want to be in. 

"...Yes.... However, we do have a legal license to do so."

"Mind if we see it?"

Annette shrugged and walked over to a door at the side of the room. The room we were in was fairly busy, with benches covered in test tubes and electronic devices, white-coated scientists working with the assorted chemicals. Annette waved us over and walked into the room, which was a filing room.

"We have a copy in here. This should be in order," she said half-proudly, handing us a document. Martin nodded. 

"Fine, fine," but as he handed it back he turned to me and whispered, "I wonder how many families they had to threaten to get that written up."

Annette showed us to the door. "If we may continue."

November 29th 1997.......

"Not another one."

"Two. Another two. But this time, we've got something a little different. Maybe there really was something the guys at Umbrella weren't telling us."

I looked down at the photograph. "Marty, what is this? Some kind of joke? Surely this is... a hoax?"

"One of those 'loonies' took a photo of a creature that he shot down in his backyard which killed his dog. Forensics are out there already."

"And how come we're not?" I asked, flipping through the other photos.

"We can go down to the lab, they've got the monster — and what's left of the dog — down there."

I stood up. "Yeah, okay. Let's go." We walked out. I turned to one of the younger men in the room. "Hey! Zeik! I want you to dig up anything you can on Umbrella. Past cases against them, public accusations, law suits, company backgrounds, names of employees, anything you can. I wanna see something on my desk when I get back."

Zeik Maguire stood up without so much as a question why and headed off to the filing room. I followed Martin out of the room.

The monster was hideous. It had yellow and black speckled skin, and looked like some sort of ape. 

"What the hell is this thing?"

Martin shook his head and turned to the forensic scientist next to him.

"What have you got?"

He checked the documents on his clipboard and paced around the metal bench.

"Well, we've conducted a close examination of the creature and found it to be a mutation of a primate. The claws are fairly advanced, and it has some reptilian-like characteristics. It seems to have been crossed with some sort of amphibian, not likely to be a frog, but a newt or salamander most likely; it's difficult to tell at this stage. The brain cavity is also quite large," he flicked through the other pages in the file. "Another interesting fact," he said, pulling off his glasses and leaning over the dead beast, "Is that those bacteria we found on the tags are quite abundant in its bloodstream. We've identified the type of bacteria as viral. It is an as yet unknown strain of virus."

I leaned over and looked at the monster. Attached to the monster's neck was a yellow, plastic tag. I checked it. The Umbrella logo was the first thing to catch my eye. Its red and white triangular pattern arranged like a Trivial Pursuit pie stood out boldly. I stood up straight.

"I've seen enough. I think we need to pay Annette Birkin a visit down at Umbrella Inc. Coming Marty?"

Martin looked up. "What'd you find?"

"Umbrella ID tag. They've been hiding this all along. One or two escapes. I'll bet they were talking about the monster, not the animals."

Martin nodded. "Yeah. I'll get another warrant."

I nodded. The scientist put his glasses back on and leaned over the dead monster. I looked over at him as I walked away. Suddenly the monster rolled over and lashed out at the scientist, claws swinging. The scientist screamed in pain as he coiled away, clutching at his face. The entire side of his face had been sliced off by the creature's claws, exposing the bone beneath. The monster swung out again, and took his head off completely. I scrambled away quickly, tipping over a tray of surgical equipment as I did so. 

The creature turned and squealed, standing on the bench. It centered its attention on me and leapt from the table, screeching as it came down against my arm, tearing the cloth of my overcoat. I drew my gun and shot at it. It took the shot and came at me again. Martin ran over and shot at it also. I fired again, and the creature screamed in pain as it collapsed to the floor, lying in a pool of its own blood. 

Martin grabbed my shoulders as I sank to the ground, staring at the monster, shaking. It twitched slightly, and Martin placed his gun against its flat head and fired, blasting a hole in its skull. I stood up and walked slowly over to the dead forensic scientist and picked up his nametag.

"Dr. Henry Blackworth. Martin, please report this to the chief. And don't worry about that warrant."

Martin looked at me. "What? Why not? We can't do anything about Umbrella unless we have a warrant."

I shook my head. "No, we can. That laboratory is in the warehouse district. We'll blow the place sky-high."

"What!? We can't do that! Its illegal, and we can't prove anything!"

I spun around to face him. "Proof?! What the hell do you call that thing? Besides. Its not illegal for us, if we're not in the spotlight."

"You're not gonna go see Al Brasco are you?"

I nodded. "He owes me one, Marty. I'm sure he'd like to singe Umbrella's tail feathers too."  
  


December 1st 1997..........

Al Brasco was one of the 'respectable criminals' who dealt in organised crime. To put it simply, Godfather Al was a Mafia boss. Dealing with the Mafia was dangerous in many ways, but I was willing to take that chance to make sure Umbrella didn't go any further. I knew about Umbrella. I had known for ages. But I'd tolerated it, because I was skeptical. I had been told a long time ago by an old friend named Lachlahn McDoughal, who's sole existence was to bring down Umbrella. But I'd passed it off as bitterness for them laying him off. He'd said that he had quit, but back then I was sure he had been fired.

Godfather Al had been in danger of prosecution when one of his men became a police informant. Umbrella had been behind the prosecution, which arouse when Al had stepped into their space and caused one of their experiments to go public, resulting in a lawsuit within the company. Back then, when I was just a street officer, I'd been approached by Brasco's 'family' and asked for a favour. I managed to pull the appropriate ropes and get Brasco off the hook, and he'd offered to help me out if I needed a hand 'if you know what I mean', he had added with a grin. Well, now I needed a hand. I approached the guy at the bar.

"You know where the Godfather is?"

The barman looked at me with wide eyes. I narrowed my eyes and looked at him.

"I'd like to speak with Godfather Al today if you wouldn't mind, my friend."

He nodded quickly and ducked into the back for a moment. I tenderly touched my arm where the monster had slashed me and sighed as I waited for his return. He came back and whispered in a hushed voice.

"Mr Brasco will see you now."

I nodded and walked into the back room. The Mafia boss sat in an armchair at his desk smoking a cigar. He was tall, thin and well dressed in a black suit and red satin tie, his eyes shielded by dark shades and his jet-black hair slicked right back. He stood up as I walked in and shook my hand.

"Danielle, what a pleasant surprise. We're off the record, aren't we my friend?"

I smiled. "Quite. I sorta need that favour we talked about."

Al sat down behind his desk and leaned forward. "Hmmm. What did you have in mind?"

He had a thick Italian accent. I remembered my father also having a similar voice, and I knew that he had worked with Brasco several times. That may have been why I wasn't uncomfortable around Brasco. I pulled an envelope out of my inside pocket.

"Umbrella has overstepped its boundaries and I think it's time to put them a little bit back over the line."

He sucked on his cigar and read the papers. Picking up the photographs of the monster and its victims, he nodded, laughing.

"Heh heh. Yeah. This is what the public needs to see. That Birkin woman, her husband is behind all this. What do you want us to do, my friend?"

"Do you think you can suss it out for me? Get some more evidence? I can either build a case in court, or gather some evidence to justify the 'removal' of Umbrella from the city."

"I like the latter."

"I figured you would."

Godfather Al nodded. "You got a deal, Danielle. It's not just a repayment for that little deed back a while ago. My incentive for this, I get my 'two cents worth' back at the company, you catching my drift here?"

I nodded. "What you're saying is, revenge is sweet."

He laughed. "You'd fit in with the family, Danielle. Sure you won't reconsider my offer? After all, your father was a made man, you know."

I nodded. "I know. But I'll stick to my job. I think chasing Umbrella around may become a second occupation."

"Well, we'll take care of this for you, Danielle. You take care of yourself."

"You too, Godfather. Keep the pictures if you like."

"Sure will."

I left, knowing that I'd left the job in capable hands.

December 6th, 1997.........

I was a bit startled when the phone rang out at midnight. I swung around as soon as I heard it and answered it quietly, hoping that it wasn't anything really important. It was Al Brasco.

"I dunno how off the record we are on your line, Danielle. Maybe it would be best to talk face to face. Can I count on you bein' at Godfather's meeting place at 1o'clock?"

I didn't know what was going on, but I agreed and quickly got dressed, locking the windows and the front door, running down the flight of stairs to the garage and taking out the car, driving down the backstreets with the headlights off. I reached the old warehouse Brasco used to hold meetings in and waited out the front in the shadows. Before long, a black BMW pulled up alongside the warehouse, and Brasco, accompanied by three of his best men climbed out.

"Godfather Al. What seems to be the problem?"

Brasco looked around for a moment. "We're ready to pull off your job for you, Danielle. But we don't know that lab. We need you to show us the way."

I turned away for a moment. I figured that would be the case.

"Fair enough. I figured it would come to this. I just have a request."

"Anything, Danielle."

"I want my partner to come. We know that place as good as each other."

Brasco nodded. "It's good as done, my friend." He clicked his fingers and turned to one of the men. "Phone that Heranger man. Do it now and tell him that Godfather Al wants him to come to the old warehouse. Tell him that Danielle asked. He'll know what you mean."

Danielle nodded. "Let's get this over with."

_Danielle has finally revealed her past dealings with Umbrella, but will the allies _

_they__ hope to find in Bio-Counter welcome them with open arms now that they are_

_marked__ by the company?_

_Only time will tell in Chapter 12: Time Spent in Reconnaissance _


	14. 12: Time Spent in Reconnaissance

Chapter 12: Time Spent in Reconnaissance...

...........That's pretty much it."

Rachelle rolled her eyes. "That's it? What about inside the labs? How did you get out? You left so much unsaid!"

"The rest is history Shellie, it didn't happen."

"Oh come on!"

Danielle looked at her. "This is it. Martin and I went with Al Brasco to the labs and helped him blow it up. Along the way, some of the monsters had escaped and made life difficult for us, impossible for some. Martin, and many of Brasco's men were killed by the monsters. You've seen it all before, except on a much larger scale. We stemmed the problem before it started, and hardly anyone knew I had anything to do with it. They knew that Brasco had something to do with it, but they couldn't prove it."

"Courtesy of you, I presume," Carlos poked. Danielle nodded. 

"Right. I destroyed the evidence. And Brasco covered for me."

"And you're still a cop? That's a good achievement," Jill put in. 

"The chief was fairly incompetent and I had a lot of friends."

"What about Al Brasco? What happened to him?" Carlos asked, still leaning over the chair.

"He's still around. Haven't heard much of him lately. But it wasn't that long ago this happened. I guess he's just lying low for now. He got back at Umbrella, that's what he mainly wanted to do."

"And so she lives happily ever after."

"I can't believe this. We've been trying to find the culprits for ages, but we had no clues. I should have guessed," Annette shook her head. Danielle looked at her.

"You're not going to go turncoat on us, are you, Annette?"

"Why shouldn't I? Years of research went to pot in that explosion."

"Yeah.... Well, it was a matter of destroy or be destroyed. God knows if I didn't ask Brasco to take care of it, he would've himself anyway. He had the motives."

Annette looked away. "Well, I seem to already be a turncoat from the company, I can't really go back now."

"It was their fault that all those things happened, Annette. You do know that, don't you?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you still contemplating working for them? They're just going to make your life hell again."

She nodded and went quiet. Danielle turned back to the others. 

"It was then I learnt about the Crossover Theory."

Rachelle's head snapped up as if on a spring. "What is this 'Crossover Theory'?! You're driving me crazy not telling me!"

Danielle shrugged. "Well, I read about it in a report written by Annette when she was in Chicago. She ended up coming back here almost straight away, I discovered. She was called in purely to lie for them."

Carlos shrugged. "Is she going to tell us what it was about?"

"I don't know. I don't think you should put it to her right now. Just leave her be."

"Danielle! Hurry up and tell us about the Crossover Theory!" Rachelle whined. Danielle shook her head. 

"Another day."

Rachelle crossed her arms. "Fine then."

"I can see the lab!" Barry called from the pilot's seat. "How do we get in touch with them?"

Danielle looked up. "As soon as you enter their airspace, they'll raise you on the radio. Just let them talk to me, I'll get us right in." She turned to the others. "Now you can hear Umbrella's story from the person who knows most about them aside from the President of Umbrella himself."

So when it all came down to it, whatever happened in Raccoon City those few days, happened in a furious flurry of events that hardly any of the few survivors could put together clearly. Jill sat back in the seat of the helicopter they had just spent the last hour in. Barry opened the door for her and the others. Danielle was reluctant to leave. She sighed and shook her head. 

"Why does everything have to happen at once?" she asked, stepping onto the concrete helipad of the great complex they had landed in. Barry shook his head. 

"I'm probably the last person to turn to for these sorts of answers, Dani. I can't keep up with this, no matter how hard I try."

Danielle laughed. "Don't worry, as long as everyone's alright at the end of the day, I'll be alright too. It's just that well, I want to make them pay for ruining my life."

Carlos shrugged. "You and everyone else. I can't believe I even took up their offer. It's making me sick just thinking about it."

"Are you all done now?"

They looked up as a middle-aged, redheaded woman in a tight, blue, expensive looking dress approached them.

"And if we're not?" Rachelle asked, putting her hands on her hips. "What do you plan to do? Arrest us?"

The woman rolled her eyes and mumbled something under her breath. Then she checked her watch.

"Look. No one here has the time to play games with you. You're only here because Lachlahn said it was fine with him. If I had been in charge, valuable information about Umbrella or not, I would have turned you away without a second thought."

Danielle, Jill, Carlos, Rachelle and Barry looked at each other, their eyes telling everyone else their opinions about this 'lady' who had been sent to greet them. Rachelle stepped forward.

"And we don't have time to stand here and listen to you go on about how far your nose is up in the clouds. We have an injured woman in the helicopter who needs immediate medical attention and I expect you to get it to her!"

The woman was taken aback. "We... well, I'm not in charge of medical," she stuttered. It was obvious she was working on an excuse to get herself out of having to deal with them. Danielle leaned into the helicopter.

"Annette. Annette, are you awake? Take off your ID tag. It could complicate things a bit if you have it on."

Annette obliged and handed her the Umbrella ID she had clipped onto her coat. Danielle slipped it into her pocket. She smiled and directed her attention back to what was going on between her friends and this woman. She had turned around and was calling out to a woman with long brown hair standing by the gate, talking to a man in a white coat. 

"Susanna! Dr Chambers! I need you over here now!"

The young woman looked up. "What is it, Vanessa?"

The woman, Vanessa Clark, held her hands behind her back and spoke to the doctor condescendingly, treating her as though she was a commoner among a convention of nobles. Yet Susanna Chambers was very patient and listened to Vanessa without any back talk.

"I want you to see to the woman in the helicopter. Make sure she's well taken care of. The quicker they all settle down, the quicker we can be rid of them."

Susanna walked over to them. Danielle nodded to her.

"Her name's Annette. Please don't ask any questions Susanna, just trust my judgement and take care of her. She was attacked my a monster called a Hunter. She's only really been nicked, but all the same, she's been hurt pretty bad."

Susanna nodded and smiled. "Okay. Listen, don't mind Vanessa. She let's her position get to her head a lot. I don't think she's seen anything past the end of her nose except her money for the past 5 or so years."

They laughed. Vanessa cleared her throat.

"If you all don't mind, follow me and I'll take you to see Lachlahn."

Jill shook her head. "We don't mind. We baby-sit."

Rachelle giggled at Vanessa's expression.

"Please. I used to say that in primary school."

"Really? I didn't know primordial organisms went to school," Rachelle wondered sarcastically. Vanessa rolled her eyes and walked off. Carlos crossed his arms and glared after her.

"Did you see the way she looked at you two? What a... a... bitch."

"Carlos, be nice," Jill scolded. "That's what happens when anal retentive people have children."

"Well then I'm glad my parents were loose, I have them to thank for my not ending up like that stuffed turkey."

Danielle laughed. "I feel a lot better now. Thank you for cheering me up, Carlos."

Carlos turned around and looked at her. "Heh. That's fine."

Vanessa led them to a metallic blue Tarago, sliding open the side door. They all got inside and Vanessa climbed into the front passenger seat. The driver nodded wordlessly and started the van. In about 15 minutes, they reached the huge, multi-storied building at the north end of the compound that served as the laboratory. The building was enclosed by a metal fence, as were many of the other buildings in the compound. As they approached, two men in uniform opened the gate for them. The driver pulled into a driveway down the side. Vanessa climbed out, followed by the others. She turned to them.

"This is the Laboratory Sub-Compound. Out of common sense, and for your own safety, I would recommend you don't touch anything."

They followed her through the side door and into a long hallway. Halfway down the hall, she stopped and pushed a button next to a sliding door. It opened to reveal an elevator. Vanessa ushered them in and pressed the button for the 30th floor. The elevator ride passed in silence. No one uttered a sound. Even when they reached the carpeted 30th floor hallway, not a voice was heard. Vanessa led them to a set of double doors. The double doors reminded Danielle of the mansion where they had first learned of Umbrella's secret.

"You may go in, but don't cause any trouble," Vanessa warned harshly. They all looked at each other, exchanging glances, but not words. Vanessa pushed open the doors. As soon as she did, an ageing man with dark blonde hair stood up, with a smile on his face.

"Girls! Such a pleasure. I'm glad you've finally come to see me again."

Rachelle smiled, and cast a sideward glance at Vanessa.

"We've had a rough ride."

"Well please, sit down," Lachlahn McDoughal invited, waving to the empty chairs at the end of the long conference table. Lachlahn sat back down, leaning on his elbow on the table and looking over at Danielle and Rachelle. Then he nodded. "Trouble with Umbrella? I'll say. Please tell us all about it. We here at Bio-Counter always do everything we can to stop Umbrella in its tracks," he looked around and sighed. "Whenever we can...."

Umbrella Pharmaceuticals Incorporated. It was the perfect disguise for the clandestine operations that were carried out below the glazed surface of the worldwide company. The public, in their ignorance, refused to presume that Umbrella was anything more than a widespread franchise that practically monopolised a sleepy mid-western American suburb called Raccoon City. The truth was far beyond the reach of their imaginations. Umbrella shielded a dark secret. Utilising similar techniques as those used to cultivate bacteria and organic matter, Umbrella went several steps to far over the line, creating the substance that meant the death of mankind if it ever were to be released into the world un-tethered. 

A deadly series of viruses which had the ability to revitalise certain cellular functions, but at the same time, deteriorated the human mind and body into a death-like state were their covert product. Another effect of this disease was the rotting bodies of these clinically dead infected beings wandered mindlessly and spread the almost irreversible disease through a bite, or killing other creatures, including people. Once the virus had begun to spread, there would be no stopping it from wiping out entire communities. 

But Umbrella had gone beyond merely experimenting with the viruses, but using their effects in a cruel way, purposefully exposing humans and animals to the muta-genic toxins, in order to create ultimate life-forms, Bio-Organic Weapons, or 'B.O.W.s'. While the 'zombie beings' created by the outbreaks or exposure to the viruses were strong and deadly, these B.O.W.s were several times more powerful. That's why the secret company, Bio-Counter was formed. 

Bio-Counter, headed by Dr Lachlahn McDoughal, was an operation dedicated to stopping Umbrella in its tracks. Dr McDoughal sat at the head of the table and explained the history and existence of Bio-Counter; the thorn in Umbrella's side. The other people seated around the table had obviously heard this speech several times over, as the impact didn't seem to phase them as much as it did the survivors of Raccoon City. Lachlahn finished quietly.

"But every advance we make, Umbrella is already several steps ahead of us. When we introduced spies into Umbrella labs, we discovered that they had already begun this practice in our labs for almost a year earlier. That's why we need to be quicker and quieter. Anything you can tell us about Umbrella, whether we know it or not, would be of a great use to us."

Carlos leaned forward. "I bet you're going to ask me, huh?"

Lachlahn shrugged. "It would be logical, after all, didn't you work for them?"

"I was just a mercenary. If I was actually properly affiliated with Umbrella, I might know some stuff but I wasn't, so basically everything I know about Umbrella, the others guys are likely to know it, too."

"It's alright," Lachlahn said with an air of disappointment in his voice, "I know how Umbrella works, I used to work for them also. I quit when the experiments with the virus came to my attention. It was against my morals, so I stopped. Umbrella thought nothing much of it, except a non-disclosure agreement, and I don't think they know that I'm in charge of the assault mounting against them. Are you sure there's nothing you can tell us? At all?"

Jill shrugged. "You know about the Rail Cannon?"

"Yes."

"P-Epsilon gas?"

"We have a more effective version of it."

"G-Virus?"

"Why wouldn't we? It's been one of the main thorns in our sides for a while now. But we do have a vaccine to it. We also have a T-Vaccine."

"What about the Z-Virus?"

Lachlahn's ears pricked up. "Now this, we've heard about it, but we haven't been able to confirm anything-"

Danielle stood up. "I can confirm the damn thing! I can more than bloody confirm it. You want proof of the existence of the Z-Virus, take a look at the Werewolf. Or the Rhino. Or even the shit that it spat on my sleeve. That damn dog Werewolf, killed one of my best friends."

"What? Really?"

Rachelle nodded. "Werewolf cut him up pretty bad. He suffered deep chest wounds. But we made hot-dogs out of that oversized Chihuahua. But that's beside the point. Danielle had a vial of the Z-Virus at one stage. But I think she threw it over the edge of that building."

Lachlahn nodded his head solemnly. "That vial would have been extremely useful."

Danielle sighed, and it seemed as though she were miles away. But she was listening carefully to what was being said. Lachlahn shook off the disappointment, and stood up. He smiled and waved his arm over the table.

"This is my wonderful board of directors. They are head of a different department each. I'll introduce you all. Here at my right, is the wonderful Dr Susanna Chambers. I believe you've already met her, she's the head of our Medical Department." 

Susanna nodded casually. Lachlahn motioned to a man on his left. 

"And this is Vincent Austin. He is head of Security for the Main Compound and Sub-Compounds, in other words; the whole complex."

Vincent was a burly man with a bushy, black beard. He had short black hair which was also moderately curly.

"And next to him, is the head of Maintenance, Martin Adams."

Adams wasn't as heavily built as Vincent, but he appeared suited to his job.

"Further down is the lovely miss Vanessa Clark, I'm sure you've met. Vanessa is the head of Administration." Lachlahn turned to the opposite side. "Next to Dr Chambers, is our head of Research and Development, Joshua McCarson. And then we have the head of Viral Research, Linda Birkin."

Joshua was a young man with dark brown hair, and Linda had shoulder-length, curly black hair. They both wore lab coats over their clothes. Linda smiled at them.

"Please try to tell us everything you can about the Z-Virus. It is very important."

Danielle shrugged. "It's a lot more powerful than the G-Virus, and is capable of mutation above the levels of T- and G-Viruses. It takes half the amount of time after infection for the host to regress into a zombie. That's pretty much all I know, apart from the fact that, if combined with an aerosol, or hydrocarbon such as in a deodorant can, it can become airborne, and its composition is prone to becoming explosive."

There was an amount of nervous whispering when this information was released. Lachlahn shook his head.

"We have to learn more about this virus. We must contact our sources immediately."

"More fun for us, more hassles for them."

"I'm glad you still think on such a positive note."

"Can you both shut up, I can't hear the radio."

"Oooooh," Zoë waved her fingers at Max, who was holding the small portable radio up to his ear. Max waved her away agitatedly.

"Hey, cut it out! They're talking about Raccoon City!"

The six of them all went quiet and listened.

"....Death toll surpassing the 100,000 mark, as a basic estimate. It is expected to be much higher. As of yet, there is presumed to be no known survivors. The origin of the disease is as yet unknown, but it is presumed that it was a form of animal rabies that was mutated and spread via vermin, perhaps by mosquitoes...."

"Hah! If only they knew half the truth!" Jennifer spat. Thomas waved her away.

"Hang on, it's not finished yet."

"Why don't you just turn on the TV? You'll get the same story. After all, it's not every day that President Clinton decides to blow up a city," Dayna suggested. Richard nodded and walked over, switching on the set. Just as Dayna had said, as soon as the picture came up, there was a video image of the mushroom cloud spreading up into the air from the impact on Raccoon City. Jennifer shook her head.

"That's bad. Oooh, now I wanna just pound Umbrella's face in!"

"....We can see from these satellite pictures coming in now that the cloud appears to be fanning out to the south. Some light fallout is expected in Boulder and as far south as Santa Fe...."

"Not only was Raccoon City destroyed, but people nearby are going to suffer radiation sickness," Zoë said. "I mean, look at that picture. It could fuse with clouds and come down almost anywhere in the rain!"

Max nodded his agreement. "At least it won't be as bad as it would've if you were right in the middle of it."

"It's actually possible that some of the Raccoon civilians could've survived, as long as they were at least 3k's from the impact site. But at this point in time, they'd be dead anyway. If the initial blast, heat pulse, stuff like that doesn't get them, the fallout will," Jennifer said, shaking her head. Max nodded again.

".....There have been allegations from enraged groups throughout the country stating that Umbrella Incorporated had direct involvement with the outbreak, and thus the destruction of Raccoon City. These accusations have been disregarded by Umbrella as 'a mild civil outcry which stems from disagreements from within the company that have no relevance what-so-ever to the disaster in Raccoon City'...."

"Bull-shit!" Jennifer yelled at the TV set. Richard waved his hands at the unseeing reporter.

"Dickheads!"

"....A representative of the company spoke out against the accusations in New York today." The view changed to a shot of a well-dressed man addressing a group of reporters. Flashes went off everywhere as he spoke. 

"The allegations of Umbrella Incorporated's involvement with the Raccoon City incident are hollow and unsupported. There is no evidence these 'factions' can produce to, in any way, incriminate the company. If any person has veritable proof that any operative of the company in any way had an involvement with this accident, it is assured that it was an individual action and investigations within the company will begin to discover the truth within that."

Richard threw a coke can at the TV amidst the booing and hissing of the others.

"Get off!"

A female reporter near the front raised her hand. "Mr Gailbriethe. Is it true that Umbrella experiments in the Arklays were terminated by Raccoon City's division of S.T.A.R.S.?"

"An Umbrella office in that area was attacked earlier this year, but the culprits are as yet unknown."

"Are there any further suspects in the case of the Chicago incident?" a young man near the front spoke up.

"At the moment no other leads have been established as to the bombers of the Chicago lab. Mafia boss Al Brasco has been named, but the Chicago and State Police have had no luck tracking him down as yet."

Zoë hissed at the TV. "You never will you turd! Go back to your slime pit!"

The same reporter had interjected again. "And what about the supposed 'Anti-Umbrella' agency supposedly based somewhere in the mid-west?"

"The company Bio-Counter which you are referring to is nothing but a second rate terrorist group. Any claims that they are any more, such as the one about them being a multi-million dollar organisation," Gailbriethe claimed, chuckling, "Are absurd and... quite laughable."

"It seems that your company has been under fire since it was founded, especially in the past few months. Have the threats and allegations had any effect on the function of the company?"

"None whatsoever. Umbrella will continue to develop new and remarkable pharmaceuticals as we have been since it was founded. There is nothing for our loyal consumers to be worried about," Gailbriethe laughed again. Jennifer sneered at the TV.

"Laugh it up, slime ball, you'll be feeling it soon enough!"

"There have been accusations in the past to your company claiming that you were making some sort of monsters in your Raccoon labs. Is that in any way true?" the female reporter asked. Mr Gailbriethe shook his head.

"Any stories you've heard about monsters bearing Umbrella ID tags, or queer animals in our labs are purely that. Stories. Inventions in the imaginations of tabloid writers to get a stir out of the public."

"And is it true that you lost two of your best researchers in the Raccoon City incident?"

"We lost many good and hard-working employees in Raccoon City. However, if you're referring to William and Annette Birkin, yes it is presumed that they were in the city at the time."

Thomas laughed. "You lost big boy! I'll bet they were the ones in charge of the virus."

"Shut up Thomas," Dayna scolded. "Did you even know that Danielle dragged Annette Birkin with her when she came here?"

Thomas almost choked on his drink. The picture cut back to the newsroom. 

"Letters of sympathy to relatives of the residents of Raccoon City are flooding into the newsroom and paper offices. The New York Times is running a special edition this afternoon about the disaster. It is true that all our hearts go out to those innocent civilians of Raccoon City. Now in other news, an airfield closure in Denver has lead to the selling off of nearly all light aircraft......"

Dayna sighed. "When will you wake up and smell the roses, people?"

Zoë shook her head. "Come on guys, let's go see what McDoughal has for us today."

The Bio-Counter compound was huge, and it was surprising that Umbrella hadn't either detected it or destroyed it yet. Inside the main compound, there were several 'Sub-Compounds', some of which were surrounded by fences. However, most were not. Medical, Laboratory, Village and Helipad were closed off, but the other buildings, Research, Watchtower, Higher Maintenance and Lower Maintenance weren't. These areas and the Main Quad were completely closed off on all sides by high, thick concrete walls topped with electrical wires. The main gate was heavily guarded, and no one got in or out without a written order, or the presence of and express permission from Dr McDoughal. Security was everywhere, and so were their guard dogs. These dogs were trained to identify and attack any individuals who were classed as intruders in the compound. The dogs were free roaming, and they went everywhere in the outer areas. 

Danielle thought this over as she walked up the steps to the Medical building. When they had first met Lachlahn McDoughal, Rachelle and herself were only academy students, almost ready to graduate. McDoughal had requested police protection, as he claimed that his life may be in danger. The chief of the local police station was happy to oblige, and sent for two students to look after Dr McDoughal. Neither Rachelle nor herself were very intent upon taking Lachlahn seriously, and he was unimpressed with the fact that two rookies had been assigned to his case. 

At this point in time, they were two of the most disliked people in the academy for completely different reasons, and they hated each other at the time. Danielle, though a lone wolf, was considered part of Daionera O'Sullivan's group, and Rachelle had her own friends, and were always getting into tiffs with Daionera and Danielle. What had gone on, was that Daionera relied on Danielle to stick up for her. That was the main reason that O'Sullivan had taken to Danielle. So throwing them into the mix together wasn't considered a good idea, and both girls were unimpressed with the decision. 

It took until there was an actual attempt on Lachlahn's life for them to take their task seriously. Each of them disliked the other, but eventually, they all became close friends, and after this assignment, Danielle made an effort of shunning Daionera and began to hang around Rachelle. They became close to inseparable. They also hadn't lost touch with Lachlahn, but were quick to pass of his claims about Umbrella's experiments. Back then, Umbrella was nothing but a company that had nothing to do with them, not a thing more. But that view had changed now, and here they were, six years down the track, fighting the same cause as Lachlahn himself.

"Oh, sometimes I wish it was still just that, a company we didn't have to worry about. Not a secret organisation more involved with developing things to hurt people, rather than help them," Danielle said to herself, sighing. "Why did it all have to change?"

She walked into the lobby and flashed the Guest ID that each of them had been issued with to the security guard. He nodded politely and let her pass. Knocking on a door just down the hall, she pushed it open slowly and walked inside. Lying on the bed, looking extremely bored and tired, was Annette. She looked up as she walked in.

"Hmm. I was wondering if anyone even remembered I was here. I was beginning to think that maybe you'd all forgotten about me."

Danielle shook her head and giggled. "As much as we'd like to forget Umbrella, I'm afraid that it's not that easy to forget the woman whose husband is responsible for the virus. It's just we've been busy. We've all been welcomed as honorary members of Bio-Counter for the moment. So, how do you feel?"

Annette closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't really want to be shut up in this room. I have a feeling they know who I am, and it does little to calm my spirits."

Danielle nodded. "I wouldn't be surprised. They've probably been trained to hate you."

Annette rolled her eyes. "Here it comes."

"What's that for? All I'm saying is that these people can have a go at ruining people's lives too, you know. What's good for you is good for them. Bio-Counter ruins Umbrella, Umbrella ruins the people, sometimes in apparent retaliation, the ruin of the people hurt Bio-Counter, and thus the circle of destruction begins again. Do I have it along the right lines?"

"Basically. But there was more to Umbrella's research than just experimentation in the field.... Oh dear. Here I go again. Defending the people who destroyed my life."

Danielle shook her head. "You don't have to keep on with them. Listen, I'm sure Rachelle and I can convince the board of directors to hear you out without contempt, if you want to try again... at doing something right, that is."

"How can I be sure you're not just using me to get at Umbrella?"

"You can't Annette, to be honest. You just have to trust me."

Annette sat up and squinted at her. "Answer me this. Why do you trust me?"

Danielle shrugged and shook her head. "Call me stupid, call me foolish, call me anything but late for dinner, but I think I can. Well, can I?"

"I won't belie you trust. But I can't guarantee that Umbrella won't track you down."

"Yeah, I know. If they find us, I won't instantly blame you. I see more than that."

Annette nodded and looked away. Danielle sighed.

"So what exactly was it that got you?"

"One of those Hunters."

Danielle smiled. "I know all about them."

"So I heard," Annette turned to her. "You can't know as much as I do, though."

"Wanna try me?"

Annette crossed her arms and looked at her. "Alright then, name all the Hunter specimens."

"Hunter Ma-121, Gamma Hunter Ma-221, Aquatic Hunter Fi-5."

Annette rolled her eyes. "Smart-ass."

Danielle smiled and held out her hand. "What do you say, Dr Birkin? Friends?"

Annette looked at her half-blankly for a moment. Then she nodded and shook her hand.

"Alright. It's a deal."

Danielle stood up. "Hate to leave you, but I have to see Dr Chambers."

Annette nodded. Danielle waved and left the room. 

Carlos sighed and leaned back in his chair, suddenly moving his balance forward as the chair threatened to tip over backwards. Jill and Rachelle burst out in laughter. Carlos grinned awkwardly and leaned forward.

"So what'dya think? Are we safe now, or what?"

"Not a chance, little boy. No-one can escape the wrath of Umbrella."

"Here's trouble," he replied, looking up at the voice. "Nice to see you're feeling a lot more evil today, Doctor."

"I find you so incredibly funny," Annette began, "That you can't hear my laughter."

Jill laughed. "Seriously though, at least everyone's back on their feet so if we do get into anymore trouble, we won't be slowed down."

Rachelle stood up and whacked Annette on the back. "So what'dya think? Can we trust Dr Evil over here, or what?"

Annette sighed and shook her head. "I'm a victim of stereotyping."

Carlos pointed at her. "You set that stereotype yourself, miss."

"You did it too and I don't see you pickin' up shit for it," Annette sneered playfully. Carlos crossed his arms snobbily and pretended to start crying a moment later.

"Mommy doesn't love me anymore."

"Poor baby," Jill teased. Rachelle laughed and then turned serious.

"But guys, think about it. How long is it really going to be until Umbrella busts this place? Or starts looking for us? I mean, Daionera was looking for you," she said, turning to Annette. "What's to say Umbrella doesn't send out agents to look for us too?"

Jill nodded. "I give them about three months at the most."

"You'd give them that?" Danielle asked incredously, appearing in the doorway. "I give them a month or less."

Rachelle shook her head. "Bliss never lasts long."


	15. 13: A Little Close to Home

Chapter 13: A Little Close to Home

It was a week later, and Dr McDoughal called another meeting. They all sat around the long, marble table in the conference room. Lachlahn stood up.

"You're probably wondering what this meeting's all about. Well, we have learned that Umbrella is planning to start an outbreak somewhere."

He let this sink in, and there was amount of noise as everyone discussed it under their breath. Lachlahn held up his hand. 

"Now everyone, we have to work out where it is being planned to be executed. We have prepared the vaccines to the first two viruses, as we have discovered that the Z-Virus is not releasable yet. We know that this operation must be large scale, as our sources claim that four new, very powerful B.O.W.s have been selected for use."

"They'd all be different, right? In Raccoon, there were only about two that were meant to be released. Nemesis and another one I heard about. But four......" Rachelle went silent. Linda looked up. 

"What could be so important that they need four B.O.W.s?"

Danielle looked at Annette. She shook her head and shrugged. 

"That's what we're trying to find out Dr Birkin," Lachlahn answered, turning to Linda. "This one has us worried."

"Damn right it does," Vincent said gruffly. "What if this one is close to home?"

"Or in one of the big cities, like Los Angeles or New York? How will they stop the virus spreading further then?" Vanessa asked. Lachlahn held up a silencing hand.

"We don't know. That is why all preparations are being made to stop the virus when it first starts to seep out. When that happens, we will be the first to know."

Annette turned to Danielle and whispered something to her. Danielle thought for a moment and nodded.

"You're right..." She looked up. "How do you all know it's not here?"

They all went silent and looked at her. Lachlahn leaned both hands on the table and looked at her.

"What?"

"I was just offered an interesting point. How can you be sure that Umbrella doesn't know all about Bio-Counter? And that it wasn't just trying out its new toys in Spencer Mansion and Raccoon City. We all know that the purpose of luring S.T.A.R.S. into the mansion was to 'test and record' live battles with the monsters. You said yourself that Umbrella knows about Bio-Counter. It's just that you're sure that they don't know the location of the HQ. What's to say they don't? That they're not just biding their time?"

Linda looked up at her, then across at Annette for the first time. And she recognised her.

"Annette Birkin. You know something, don't you."

They all looked up at the blonde. Lachlahn scrutinised her for a moment.

"Annette Birkin? That same Annette Birkin whose husband was responsible for the viruses that caused the downfall of Raccoon City and its surrounding area? You're an Umbrella scientist, aren't you. Then why are you here?"

Annette looked down at the table, not saying anything. Danielle put a hand on her shoulder and came to her aid.

"Annette is with us. Don't worry about it, I trust her greatly. Just give her a chance."

Lachlahn motioned to her. "Well Annette, do you know something?"

"No," Annette shook her head. "I was just considering the possibility that no one else seemed to be touching at. None of the authorities or the civilians thought that Raccoon City would be a target for the virus. No one saw it coming because no one believed it would happen. At least not there. I didn't think it would happen either. It was all Umbrella's fault that it even occurred, as if it isn't obvious anyway. If they hadn't stuck their noses in, then maybe....."

"Were you having second thoughts, Annette? William was in over his head, don't you think? You were too," Linda pressed. Annette tried to shy away from the attention. Danielle shook her head.

"Listen. Enough of that. I'm sure she'd rather not be reminded. It's over with now. It's just that we've all learnt to expect the unexpected, not just take it as it comes......"

"But to stop it before it starts," Rachelle finished for her. "I agree. Umbrella's too much like that, to just go and do something that you wouldn't expect them to do. Maybe you shouldn't go throwing all your protection away just because you got a tip-off that the outbreak would occur in say Denver, or Phoenix."

Lachlahn stood, silent. Not a person at the table uttered a word.

"You do have a good point. Lachlahn is smart to take precautions. I'm surprised that no one else thought of it."

Annette shrugged. "I was just thinking that maybe it was something they didn't consider. But through the process of elimination, it would most likely be the T-Virus, the last samples of the G-Virus were destroyed in Raccoon, it no longer exists. And unless Umbrella was fast to finish the testing of the Z-Virus, they can't be ready to release it yet."

"But it's still a possibility, that. Isn't it?"

Annette nodded in reply. Danielle and Annette were standing on the balcony of one of the small houses in the Village Sub-Compound where the Bio-Counter employees and their families stayed. It was dusk on the 8th of October, a week after they had escaped Raccoon City. 

"Dani!" Jill called her from one of the rooms inside the house. Danielle walked slowly inside to see what it was. Jill handed her the phone, her face white. Before Danielle even touched the phone, she was very concerned. It took a lot to make Jill so pale. 

"Jill? What's wrong?"

Jill pushed the phone into her hand. "It's Dr Birkin. She has some bad news."

Danielle picked up the phone. "Linda?"

Linda Birkin's voice was broken and sombre. "Danielle? We need you to come around here to Research right away. Bring everyone. I think Annette was right."

Danielle almost dropped the phone. "Wh... what? How?"

"Just come around here. It'll be more than crystal clear. Just hurry."

Danielle hung up the phone and turned to them. "I think we've got a problem."

They all stood in the dimly lit room, the only real light coming from the ultra-violet lamp of a specimen case. Linda and Annette were standing over the case, Linda writing on a clipboard. Carlos had Jill in his arms, nursing her protectively. Rachelle and Barry stood alongside each other, sharing the same stony expression. Danielle was also looking into the case, studying the creature inside. 

It was some sort of plant, but, unlike any other plant, this one writhed and squirmed, thrashing its vines at the glass of the case. There was a bulbous growth that sprouted several vines, of which the creature used two as arms and two as legs. It was ugly, and kept hissing at them from behind the glass. Annette shook her head.

"It looks very much like the G-specimen IVY.... But if it were a virus orientated creature, it should be able to spit-"

Suddenly the little creature shot a spray of sticky-looking, sizzling liquid from its mouth. It hit the glass and melted a small hole in it. Danielle nodded.

"Acid. It can spit acid. Linda, have you called Lachlahn yet?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Don't you think you should?"

"It's been years since he's even looked at one of Umbrella's monsters. He wouldn't be able to ID it. But you've just come away from these types of creatures, I figured you may be able to identify it as a viral origin. But if that was a confirmation on the fact that it was generated by the virus, then that's all I need to know to raise the security alarm."

Jill nodded. "That would be a brilliant idea, Dr Birkin."

"If that virus takes hold, you can say goodbye to your little operation in the mountains," Rachelle pointed out bluntly. Linda nodded and picked up the phone on the desk beside the tank.

"Nathan, put me through to Dr McDoughal. I think we have a problem."

All it took was that one phone call. Before Linda had even finished speaking, security had already been notified, and guards were beginning to turn up outside the buildings and in them, armed with heavy artillery. They were taking no chances. Linda looked at the monster in the glass case as she described it to Lachlahn. 

"It has a mouth, yes. The lips are in three petal-like sections. The bulb is sort of longish. It's a speckled greenish colour," Linda responded to Lachlahn's unheard questions about the creature. She nodded. "Yes doctor, I will. Right away." She hung up. "Dr McDoughal wants it destroyed," she explained, reaching down into a drawer under the bench and producing a vial of liquid and a syringe. She filled the syringe with the liquid and put her hand cautiously into the case. As she did so, the creature jumped up and bit her hand. She pulled back with a shriek and knocked the case onto its side. Her white latex glove turned red where the monster's teeth had broken through, and the monster fell from the overturned case and scurried across the floor.

"Grab it!" Linda barked, wincing and nursing her bleeding hand. "Don't let it escape!"

Rachelle quickly put her foot down on the creature's vines as it scrambled past her, trapping it under her heavy boot. Barry took the needle from Linda and injected the contents of the syringe into the monster. Linda winced in pain and gripped her hand, trying to stop the blood that was flowing freely from the side of her right hand. Jill came over and helped her take off the glove.

"Here, I'll give you a hand."

Linda smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Jill. There's a first aid kit in the drawer of that desk over there," she directed, pointing. Carlos went over and got it, bringing it back to the table and opening the lid. Jill set to bandaging the wound as quickly as she could. Linda looked over to where Barry, Rachelle, Annette and Danielle were standing over the creature, which was now twitching slightly.

"Is it dead?"

Barry tentatively lifted the twitching creature by the back of the bulb and brought it over. 

"There was enough arsenic in that syringe to kill a bull."

"It's dead," Linda confirmed, still nursing her hand. "And Dr McDoughal is now seeing that nothing gets in or out of this compound which has more than the usual quota of limbs."

Danielle shook her head. "What if it's too late? How do we know that the virus isn't already spreading as we speak? What about you, Dr Birkin? That bite is almost certainly infected."

Linda nodded. "Normally I'd be running around yelling about it, but many of the employees, including myself, have been vaccinated against the T- & G-Virus. But all the same, more than two thirds of the employees aren't. As for your theory, well it could be right. But we can't really do anything if that is the case. Once the virus takes any sort of physical hold...."

"It's adios munchachos," Rachelle finished slowly. Linda nodded. 

"And once the virus begins to spread, there is no stopping it. I'm sure you've learnt that in the past."

They all nodded. Their eyes turned to the plant-like creature, lying still on the bench. Linda shook her head.

"Let's just hope that we found out in time."

_What's going to happen to them now that signs of the virus have shown up in Bio-Counter?_

_With the encompassing concrete walls of the compound, how can they escape?_

_Find out in Chapter 14: Nowhere is Safe…_


	16. 14: Nowhere is Safe

Chapter 14: Nowhere is Safe

It was now midnight. Jerome Goldberg, the Compound Supervisor, was asleep in the swivel chair in front of his computer, in his dimly lit office. He had been working late, watching the monitors downstairs with the two brothers who worked in the telecommunications department, Nathan and Joseph Lars. He had come upstairs to do some filing in peace, where he could concentrate. He was rudely awoken by a crash from downstairs. 

Frightened from his sleep, he spilled the papers resting on his slightly round belly as he jumped to his feet. He ran to one of the windows that overlooked the main gate to the Bio-Counter compound. There was nothing. But he could swear that, in the dark, he could see some sort of long, thin object snaking its way along the top of the east wall. He blinked and shrugged it off as a result of his tiredness. 

Turning away, he rubbed his hand over his eyes, yawning. Walking over to one of the windows that faced inside the building he was in, he poured himself a cup of coffee from the jug on the desk. As he stood and looked out the window, sipping at his mug, he caught a glimpse of movement downstairs in the vehicle storage area. 

He was about to shrug it off again when there was another great crash. Putting the mug down on the bench, he picked up a torch and threw open the office door, running along the catwalk that led from his office to the stairs that went down to the main floor. 

He slowed down as he reached the bottom of the stairs, switching on the torch as he found himself in the darkness. On the wall was the switch for the lights. Flicking it, he swore under his breath when the lights didn't come on.

"Meant to be a damn maintenance building, can't even have the wiring checked once in a while," he complained agitatedly. He panned the light from the heavy-duty torch around the storage room. Inside were many vehicles that had been brought in for maintenance or storage. 

On the other side of the room, there was a black jeep that had come in to be stored for a while. It had been in good condition, but now it had long claw marks down the side, as if it had been attacked by tigers. Not far away from it was a pile of tyres and boxes that had been tipped over. Jerome shook his head.

"Argh, shit." 

He shook his head and approached the wrecked jeep and the overturned crates. 

"I guess this explains the crash. Those damn rats are gettin' tougher every day."

He inspected the side of the jeep, running the tip of his finger along the deep claw mark. He couldn't make anything of it. Shaking his head, he pondered what could possibly have made them. As he thought about it, he heard a clicking sound echo through the warehouse. Standing up, he reached for his gun. He picked up his radio.

"Lars. Can you hear me?" There was no answer, only static. Jerome shook his head angrily. Aiming his gun in the direction of the sound, he cocked it. "Show yourself or I'll shoot!"

There was a hiss and a stubby, two-legged silhouette appeared against the darkness. It stepped into the torchlight, and Jerome jumped back at the sight of the ugly little creature. It looked like some sort of gorilla or frog. It had a hunched back and no neck. Its long arms hung at its sides, and each hand had four, long claws on it. Its legs were stubby, and it had lizard-like feet. Its skin was green with yellow-splotched lines all over it. The skin appeared slimy, and the jaws were filled with little, sharp teeth. 

It hissed again, and sprang into the air with a high-pitched scream. Jerome ducked aside and unloaded an entire clip into the creature as it came down. He wasted no time in loading up again, but the creature was faster, and as soon as it hit the ground, it spun and slashed the back of his legs, causing him to fall to the ground. It pulled its claw back and prepared to swipe his head off, but he pulled his gun and fired it point blank in its head. The monster reeled back with a pained screech, and dropped to the floor with a thud. Jerome dragged himself over to the intercom on the desk near the bottom of the stairs, hoping to goodness it was working. 

"Hello!" he croaked. 

"Yes? This is Dr Watson. What's the problem over there?"

"I... it's Jerome. I've been attacked down here. I can't walk."

"Dear God, by who?!"

"A monster," Jerome glanced nervously back at the creature lying on the floor in the torchlight, face down in its own blood. "A monster with freakin' big claws. It got my legs."

"Okay, just hold tight. I'm sending someone down now. Stay where you are."

He let go of the button and collapsed to the floor, breathing heavily and leaning against the wall, his gun at the ready in case one of the monster's friends decided to join in.

Lee-Ann Watson was the assistant to Dr Chambers. Dr Watson inspected the wounds on Jerome's legs and shook her head.

"They're pretty bad. I don't think he'll be able to walk again."

Jerome winced and nodded. "Yeah? I think I'm up for worker's compensation, then. Don't you, Doc?"

Dr Watson looked at him and raised an eyebrow, then got set into her task of stitching up the deep lacerations in his legs. 

Linda Birkin had since removed the monster and brought it over to the Research building. She stood over the monster in the examining room and prodded at it with her scalpel. Jill, Danielle, Barry and Annette walked in. Jill jumped when she saw the monster. 

"Wh.... where did it come from?" she stuttered, taking a step back. Linda looked up. She was wearing a pair of goggles and had her hair tied back. She looked back down at the monster.

"It attacked the Compound Supervisor, Jerome Goldberg, half an hour ago. I'm taking a look at it."

"Be careful when you're standing over the top of it, Linda," Danielle warned, "I've had past experiences with Hunters on examination tables. Undesirable ones."

"It's a good thing that it's dead," Barry said with relief. Danielle agreed.

"As I said though, be careful. It's called a Hunter. Nasty son of a bitch."

"I too, have had some undesirable experiences with these monsters," Annette added. Linda looked up.

"Nothing against you Annette, but why do you have to follow Danielle everywhere?"

Annette looked at her sharply. Danielle laughed.

"You're right, it is nothing against her. We asked her to come."

Linda shrugged and turned back to the beast. 

"They are one of the most savage monsters created by Umbrella," Jill added, "They've been around since the beginning."

"Insatiable blood lust, kill just because they have the profound ability to, super fast assholes that they are," Barry said, looking at the creature. "Not to mention, if looks could kill."

Linda pulled off her goggles. "You do know a lot, don't you."

Danielle shrugged. "We've been through a lot. You only stop it. We've lived through the onslaughts that you couldn't prevent."

Linda nodded. "I suppose you found a lot of written pieces along the way that made understanding things easier, telling you what you needed to know."

"Maybe so, but it was worse than you could possibly imagine. And as much as I hate to say this, I think you will be sympathising with us very soon."

Everyone on the board of directors, as well as some other people, had assembled in one of the labs in the Laboratory Compound. There was a lot of noise, and Lachlahn, no matter how hard he tried, couldn't be heard over the top of everyone else. He shook his head and sighed in exasperation. Danielle stood up on a table and drew a breath. Rachelle immediately blocked her ears. Jill looked at her curiously.

"If I were you, I'd follow the example," Rachelle suggested with a grin. Jill shrugged and blocked her ears also. 

"Shut the hell up! Someone is trying to organise you so that you can get out alive, and you're not making it any easier on him, therefore in turn, you're making it worse for yourselves!" Danielle screamed at the top of her lungs. Everyone settled down into a nervous silence. Lachlahn smiled tiredly.

"Thank you, Danielle. Now, if you will all listen to me! We have not acted in time to stop this attack, and our only chance is to escape through the main gate. There is relative safety in numbers, so we must not, I repeat, must NOT split up."

There was an amount of unsure chatter, but it all died back down. Just as Lachlahn was about to speak again, there was a rattling pounding at the door to the lab. They all turned to see the blank faces of the most well known of the viral creations. Mindless, open-mouthed zombies crashed and pounded at the doors and windows in their efforts to get inside. 

"Out the back way! Now!" Lachlahn ordered. The group rushed out through the back door of the lab and into the corridor. In their panic, they unintentionally spilt up. Rachelle, Jill, Barry, Danielle, Carlos and Annette stood in the hall outside the back door of the lab and looked around. The halls split three ways from where they stood. None of them knew which way was out. Jill shook her head.

"The only way I can see any of us having a chance of getting out is to split up."

Danielle smiled and shook her head. "Normally I'm the one to suggest splitting up."

Jill nodded, shrugging. "But maybe we should try going by ourselves. Pairs never really worked without a hitch."

"That's game," Annette offered bluntly. Danielle agreed, grinning.

"I know."

"Let's pick our directions," Jill said, looking the three ways they could go.

Danielle pointed straight ahead. "I'll go this way."

Rachelle nodded. "I'll go with you for a little while."

Jill and Carlos started off to the left. Carlos turned to Annette and Barry.

"That leaves you two to the right."

Annette looked up at Barry and inertly raised an eyebrow.

"What fun."


	17. 15: Stretching Patiences

Chapter 15: Stretching Patiences

Danielle looked down at the stairwell. "Looks deep."

Rachelle peered over he shoulder. "Yeah well, there's no other way but down, so, I guess, take a deep breath."

Danielle plunged into the water that flooded the stairwell, and dove under. Rachelle followed close behind. They were only under for a short while when they pushed open a watertight door and water flooded into the room behind. Now the water was only up to their waists. Danielle held her arms away from her sides and checked how wet she was, flicking her arms in exasperation. Rachelle looked around the room. 

"Check it out, Dani."

Danielle looked around the room. The water made the whole room glow a bluish colour, and they found they were in one of the many labs. There were big specimen tanks along the walls, they had been fractured and were empty. Under the water on the floor were shards of glass from the tanks. They waded slowly through the water and opened a door that led out of the room. They peered cautiously through the window in the door before they considered opening it. Inside, a researcher was trying to run through the waist-deep water towards the door they were standing behind. He appeared nervous and kept glancing around. Danielle motioned over her shoulder.

"There's a staircase on the other side. Let's go."

Rachelle paused her. Suddenly they were thrown back as the man threw open the door. He slammed it shut behind him and looked at the two women.

"Get out of here!" he ordered in a panicked voice. "Get out of the water!"

Rachelle looked at him curiously as Danielle started for the other stairs. 

"Who are you?" Rachelle asked him. He didn't answer at first, turning around and glancing through the window. 

"I'm Dr Phillip Craig. Now that you know that, get out of here! Now!"

As he finished, the door behind him surged, as something rammed against it. Rachelle turned and ran after Danielle. Just as they left the water, the door burst open and they turned back to hear Dr Craig scream and disappear under the water. The water around him bubbled and frothed, turning red with blood as an unseen creature attacked him. The water slowly calmed, and the dismembered pieces of Phillip's body bobbed on the surface like so many leaves in a pond. Suddenly, a slippery form sprang from beneath the water, one of its huge, clawed hands held above its head as it came down, ready to swipe at one of the girls. They ducked aside quickly and ran up the stairs and through the door at the top. Rachelle and Danielle stood on the other side of the door and panted, the breath taken out of them. Rachelle shook her head.

"That was just sick. It literally tore him limb from limb! I've never actually seen someone killed by one of those things. I guess it's hard to imagine how it looks from either party's point of view....."

Danielle nodded. "I think that was an Aqua-Hunter. I read about them back in Raccoon City. I also read about the black and red 'Gamma-Hunter', which is supposedly faster and smarter than the originals."

Rachelle held up her hands. "Look Dani, not be rude or anything, but I really don't wanna talk Umbrella wildlife right now."

Danielle shrugged. "Though I don't forget you're older than me Rachelle, I honestly couldn't give a damn."

"You're beginning to sound like you did at the academy."

"So what if I am?"

Rachelle crossed her arms. "Oh, so that's it. You want to get out with your new best friend Annette."

Danielle looked insulted. "How can you say that!? Annette and I have an agreement! Yes we're friends — but that's beside the point!" She looked both ways down the corridor. "You want to get out? Then go on, get lost. I'm going my own way!"

Rachelle put her hands on her hips. "Fine!"

They turned away from each other and walked down the hall in opposite directions.

Annette pushed open the door with the end of her gun, looking both ways before she went through. Barry was close behind.

"We can split up now," Barry said, signaling to the two-way hall they were standing in. Annette nodded.

"Good luck to you, Barry."

"You too, Annette."

They went their separate ways. Annette ran down the left, Barry went to the right. Annette stopped running and thought for a moment. She recognised this hallway. On the left was the elevator they had ridden when they had first arrived, and just down from that was the door out to the driveway where the Tarago was parked. Annette pushed open the door and was met with the sound of crickets chirping. She stepped out and sneaked along quietly. She could hear the snarls of monsters hiding in the dark, the moans of the zombies and the occasional gargled scream of one of the few security guards or employees that hadn't made it to some sort of safety. But one sound came clear over the top of all this. It was the sound of purring. But not just any purring. The low, peaceful sound snapped her memory back to Smokey. 

She wondered what had become of the failed experiment that her new allies had tamed. T-092, Smokey, had purred in the exact same way. But she knew it wasn't their cat. Their cat was still shut up in Research. The sound was constant. It was a fractured purr that seemed calm, but wasn't. She covered her ears and closed her eyes. If there was another Smokey out there, it wouldn't be so easy to get to the gate. Suddenly she felt a hand drop on her shoulder and she spun around. Annette jumped at the shadowed figure and almost cried out.

"Shhhh. It's me, Susanna." Susanna Chambers let go of her shoulder. Annette breathed a sigh of relief.

"Jesus, Susanna. You scared the life out of me."

"Sorry. Listen. The Main Gate is a useless means of escape. There's a huge plant monster similar to the one Linda had in the lab earlier on all over the East Wall. The safest place is in Research. Maybe then we can get Smokey out of the keeping room and use it to get out."

Annette sighed and pointed out into the darkened quadrangle. 

"Alright then. You want to go out there?"

Susanna looked across the Quad, which was slightly lighter now in the morning twilight. There was a silhouette of a figure running across the wide area, into the central garden. Just as the mystery person reached the garden, a huge black form came pelting across the distance from out of nowhere and there was a shrill scream as the figure was taken down by the monster. Susanna looked away.

"There's no other way. We can't stay here. Worse than that thing is down in Laboratory."

Annette looked at her. "What is it?"

"A Bio-Organic Weapon called the 'Tyrannos'. It's really dangerous. More so even than the Nemesis, which I'm sure you know about."

Annette nodded. "That must be dangerous. How do you know?"

"Lachlahn and I were on our way out of the compound when we came across it. It's huge. Covered in tentacles, that is under its trenchcoat. It wears a steel mask with a small slit in it so it can see, and heavy boots, so you can tell when it's coming. Fingerless gloves, bad attitude."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was targeting certain people. Umbrella can do that now. Give its monsters the intelligence required to know who, what, where and when... maybe not why, however. Who knows? The creatures may develop morals, and that's obviously a no-no for Umbrella."

"If you say so," Susanna shrugged. "To us, Umbrella is a proverbial thorn in our collective sides. They released four damn B.O.W.s into the compound, for Christ's sakes! What else are we meant to consider them as?!"

"Well, mass murderers would come to mind." 

Susanna nodded. "I guess, but that's a new tune coming from you, Annette Birkin. Did you look up the word morals in the dictionary lately or something?"

"You don't necessarily have to be so bitter. I know that a simple 'sorry' won't suffice, but I'm trying my best to make amends. However, I think I realised too late I was wrong. I didn't realise William was wrong."

"Well you do now, and that's the main thing. It goes against my tuition, but I'll trust you, for now. Come on. We're not going to get to Research if we just stand here. Something will get us."

She ran cautiously out into the dim light, waving for her to follow. Annette shrugged.

"I'm waiting for that day," she said, sighing. Then she followed Dr Chambers out into the Quad.

Jill shook her head, sighing. "I don't know, Carlos. I really don't know what we're going to do. We have to get out of here, but I don't know the way."

Carlos shrugged. "And you think that I do? I've never been here before, so of course I don't know the way."

Jill held up her hands. "Look, I don't want to get into a fight right now."

Carlos nodded. "I know, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry, it's just pressure, it's not your fault," Jill assured. "I'm just uptight."

"Don't blame yourself," Carlos shook his head and looked around. The corridor split. They had the choice of straight ahead, left, or right. Carlos pointed left.

"I'll take the left path. Why don't you go straight ahead?"

Jill nodded. "I'll stay straight on then. I'll meet you outside, alright?"

"You sound so sure."

"I am. That's the key to survival, thinking positive. Didn't you know that?"

Carlos grinned. "Hah, funny. You obviously don't remember some of the tantrums I chucked back in Raccoon City."

"Did that slap across the face bring you to your senses?" Jill asked smugly. Carlos rolled his eyes.

"Put it this way. I woke up to myself so bad, I could have sworn it was all a horrible nightmare."

Jill shook her head. "Well, I guess we'd better get going, huh? Otherwise we may never find our way out."

"I wish we didn't have to split up."

Jill shrugged. "Live with it. Make sure you live with it, too. I'll see you later."

Carlos nodded and ran off down the path that headed left. Jill stood on her own for a moment, before continuing on. Most of her trip was uneventful. She poked her head into several rooms along the way, but found nothing of great interest. Suddenly she heard a sound down the hall. It sounded like heavy boots on the tiled floor. She remembered that Rachelle wore combat boots. She ran down the hall, turning a corner, and froze. So did the massive figure, headed in her direction. 

It wore a thick coat, just like the one that the Nemesis wore. Heavy boots on its big feet made the loud clumping that had led her to believe that maybe one of her fellow S.T.A.R.S. members was down the hall. Fingerless gloves half-covered misshapen hands with thick fingers and dirty, speckled palms, and a shining, steel mask hid its facial features from her; apart from a thin slit which it used to see through. It was human-like yet stood taller than a professional basketballer and was more heavily built than a pro-wrestler. Jill stood where she was, gaping at the hideous monstrosity which had begun its advance upon her. Feeling herself regain control over her legs, she turned tail and pelted off down the hall, but she could hear the steps of the monster behind her.

"Carlos! Carlos help!"

Jill closed her eyes and ran as fast as she could, but no matter how fast she ran, she could still hear the footsteps behind her. Suddenly she felt someone grab her around her waist and pull her through a door. She sat in the dark, with her rescuer holding her close. She clamped her eyes shut and shivered until she heard the footsteps stop right outside the door. The monster paused, then just as she thought it was about to come crashing through the door, it kept going.

"It's alright, you can open your eyes now," a soothingly familiar voice whispered. Jill slowly opened her eyes, but couldn't see anything in the dark. The room brightened as a small kerosene lamp was lit behind her. She turned around and smiled up at Carlos.

"I owe you," she thanked him shakily. Carlos shrugged.

"You'd do the same for me, right? Think nothing of it."

Jill was shivering uncontrollably, and she suddenly began to cry. It was unusual for her. Carlos came over and put his arms around her shoulders, rocking her gently.

"Hey, you're safe for now. That monster's gone, how about we both go the way you were heading, that way we won't run back into it."

"How do you know that the path doesn't overlap?"

Carlos held up a folded piece of paper. "Among the other interesting things in this room, myself included," he said with a grin, "I found a map of the laboratory. The path you took would lead straight to the way out, after a few twists and turns and changing floors, that is. The way I was going went right into the heart of the main laboratory, which is a giant maze. Not very fun, considering all the nasties that are probably down there."

He wiped the tears from her eyes. Jill looked around the room from where she sat on the carpeted floor. There was a trunk, a typewriter, and a set of shelves with some interesting looking things on them. She got up to have a closer look. Carlos joined her. The shelves were stacked with boxes and items that could prove useful. Jill picked up a small box and opened it. Inside was some sort of diary and a magnum. Jill slipped the gun into her pocket. Carlos grinned.

"Stealer."

Jill looked up at him and laughed. "What? It's not like the person who put it there is really going to need it."

"Wouldn't you feel guilty if they did?"

Jill shrugged and turned to the diary. She gasped when she saw who owned it. 

"Carlos, this diary belongs to the girls."

"Who?"

"Rachelle and Danielle. From when they were in the academy. It's theirs."

"Well, what does it say?"

Jill opened the diary to the first entry and smiled. "It's a letter book. I used to have one when I went to high school. It says;

Dear Shellie. I just finished target practice. The instructor says I'm pretty good. Oh well, bet I'm better than you! Whales can't shoot for quid! Sorry Shellie, that was uncalled for, you're not a whale, you're a dog! That's right, a b-i-t-c-h. Woof! Nah. God I'm in a mood. Oh yeah, you remember the last day of the McDoughal assignment? Did you give Lock your addy? I gave him mine. He's invited us to come up to that place in the mountains for the summer. Even though it's a scientific-sorta thingy, maybe it'd be a good chance to get away from Dawny the Horny for once! What'dya say? Wanna go?

                        D.A.

D.A.? I wonder what that stands for?"

Carlos shrugged. "Who knows. Must be a nickname. Come to think of it, aren't Danielle's initials 'D.A. Lanza'?"

Jill nodded. "We'll have to ask about this 'Dawny the Horny' later on."

They both chuckled. Carlos took the diary and turned to the next page. He laughed.

"Rachelle's reply. Hah. She sounds happy with Dani's opening comments."

"Well stop stuffing around, read it!"

"Alright already! Rachelle says;

Dear D.A. Nice to hear about your ability to maim and otherwise rob people of their rights to live through the use of assorted firearms. You must get those skills from your good old daddy dearest! At least I come from civilised Wales, not from the foxhole you were found in. And I'd rather be a dog than a schizophrenic psychopathic evil bitch! Anyway, you got mail from Locky? Okay, I'll go. Dawny the Horny is getting to me, too. Hey! I'm broken!

                        Shellie.

Haha. I'm broken. I wonder what that means?"

"They really loved each other, didn't they? They've been inseparable for years," Jill said with a smirk. "I wonder when they stopped writing in this?"

Carlos flipped to the last entry in the book. He pointed to the page and read it over.

"The date is.....6th October.....1998. That's only a couple of days ago."

Jill looked confused. "How? This was hidden really well."

Carlos shrugged and began to read it aloud. "It reads......

'Shellie! I found our old diary! Isn't that great? But I have to tell you something. But I can't tell you aloud, it belongs here, forever in this book, and maybe never even read by you, or anyone else for that matter. The past few months have had a drastic wear-down on me. I don't think myself special, it's happening with all of us. My attitude sucks, I could look better, and I feel like I'm trying to put myself above everyone else. I need to sort things out once and for all. I know for a fact that Bio-Counter labs will be under attack within the next few days, and I don't know if I'll make it out of this one alive. So, I'm going to put this down in written words, should my last spoken ones be unheard and incoherent. 

'There is a major Umbrella lab hidden in the Rockies, almost right on top of the Canadian border. It's the American headquarters. All the Umbrella labs in America operate under this lab's supervision. Even though it's not the main HQ, taking it out will hit Umbrella where it hurts. But even if I do make it, I still may not go with you. I need to find my father, I know that he's alive somewhere. I also have a brother in this world, he's out there somewhere, I know it. I feel like I'm so close, especially when we're all together, I get this feeling that I can't be far off. I'll tell you what I've never told anyone.... Don't tell, okay? 

'When I was really young, I heard my mother and father arguing about something. My father had received a letter from a woman in South America who he had an affair with secretly, and the child was born 3 months before me. That means that my brother is only 3 months older than me. I can't remember the name, I know it begins with a C......I honestly don't remember. If you ever find out, please tell either him or me. And if I don't get out, make sure the others don't get up to anything too dangerous. You guys are like the family I never had. We're like sisters, and I hope that my secrets are safe with you... As if you really were my sister. I flicked through this book, and took note of some of the mean things I said. Sorry.

                        D.A.

"That's so....Sad. Sweet, in a way. She cares about us a lot. I want to go find her now but, what will she say if she finds out we read her book?"

Jill shook her head and slipped the book into one of the pockets on the trousers he was wearing. She shook her head.

"She won't say anything. Because she's not going to know."

Carlos stared at her. "Wh... what? Why are we taking it with us then?"

"Something tells me we should. But don't let her know, whatever you do."

"I can't keep that sort of secret from her, it's dishonest."

Jill nodded. "I know, Carlos. How about this. We tell her when all of this is over."

Carlos nodded subduingly. "Alright. But if I slip by accident, you have to back me up. She's the sort of person you tell your darkest secrets to without realising until after you've done it."

"I know, she's pretty manipulative. But she can't maneuver you into telling her if she doesn't even suspect that we have it."

"I feel like I'm an Umbrella operative keeping secrets from the staff here. It just doesn't feel right. This is going to be on my mind until we tell her now."

"Try to forget about it. But I guess it explains why she's been acting distant, and hasn't been herself lately. Perhaps it was while she was in a weak state of mind that Annette Birkin roped her into-"

"Hey. I kinda like Annette. She's not that bad. Give her a chance."

Jill rolled her eyes. "Oh Carlos. I'm only poking fun. Come on, let's go. I wanna get out of here before Mr Tall, Dark & Ugly decides to come back for another look around."


	18. 16: Bleak Prospects

Chapter 16: Bleak Prospects

Barry crossed his arms contemptibly and sighed as he watched the short, dark-haired woman bustle around, fiddling with the switches on the machines in the small, dimly lit room. 

"Are you done yet, Dr Papailia? Being in this place is making me uneasy."

She looked up at him, pulling off her dark glasses. Her manner reminded him of Wesker. She brushed her hair back and looked around.

"Why don't you go ahead, Mr Burton? If I catch up, I catch up. If not, that's my problem."

"Is there something wrong, Doctor? You seem a bit twitchy."

Carah Papailia looked around the room again, a suspicious nervous twitch in her movements. She shook her head briskly and smiled.

"Not a problem at all. Why do you ask?"

Barry caught a glimpse of a gun and surgical set tucked into the pockets of her lab coat underneath so they weren't easy to see. The idea that she was carrying around such a large amount of dangerous items made Barry all the more unsettled.

"Doctor, might I ask why you have such a large multitude of hazardous implements under your coat?"

She looked down quickly, pulling aside her coat so he could see all the equipment perfectly. She looked back up at him, her expression as though she thought it wasn't unusual for her to have so many.

"What, these? Oh that's nothing. Just in case."

"In case what?" Barry asked, giving the items an awkward look. "In case you feel the urge to go on a mass killing spree?"

Carah laughed, leaning forward and closing her coat. "Oh please, don't give me ideas."

Barry raised an eyebrow and nodded slowly, rubbing his beard and then shook his head.

"Okay. I'll see you another time then, Dr Papailia." He turned quickly and walked out the door without another word. As he walked down the hall, he shook his head. "Freak woman."

Rachelle sat on the concrete steps out the front of the Laboratory, thinking. She had just walked off, knowing where she was going. But she knew that any argument turned Danielle around completely, and she lost all sense of direction and co-ordination until it was resolved, or she found someone to legitimately place the blame on. The thought was taunting her more than Wesker, the asshole ex-captain of S.T.A.R.S, had ever done. She knew that Danielle was probably so turned around that she was most likely going in circles, without even considering that it would be the case. 

Rachelle looked up and saw two familiar figures run across the Quad in the dim light of dawn. Standing up, one part of her wanted to follow, but another part of her wanted to go back into the labs and find Danielle. Torn two ways, she saw that Annette and Susanna were out of sight now, so she turned and put her hand on the door handle of the Laboratory lobby.

"You'd better God damn appreciate this, Dani," she said under her breath, and threw open the door, running back inside. 

Barry ran down the hall as fast as he dared without making too much noise. Suddenly he tripped and landed flat on his face. As he pushed himself to his knees, he heard a soft and distant-sounding voice.

"Oh, sorry Barry, I didn't mean to trip you."

Barry turned around and looked at the figure cuddled against the wall, looking at him as if she didn't know him. 

"Danielle? What are you doing?"

Danielle shrugged passively. "Nothing."

Barry pushed himself to his feet. "This I can see," he said. He reached down and pulled her lightly to her feet. "Come on. You can't just sit there like that."

"Why not?"

Barry was concerned. Danielle, despite her attitude, was usually quite sensible, but for some reason, explaining to her at the moment that they needed to escape was like trying to explain quantum physics to a seven year old.

"Danielle, what's wrong with you? You know very well that you can't just sit there on the floor."

Danielle shook her head to clear it, and ran a hand through her hair.

"Oh... sorry Barry. I don't know what's up with me, I'm turned around. I believe I know the way out from here, you do trust me enough, don't you?"

"I never didn't."

Danielle nodded and pointed down the hall. "Come on. There's a service passage that leads to the Higher Machinery building. There's a key card reader for the door, but I have one, so it's no problem. From there, we can work our way around to one of the other compounds, I'm pretty sure Umbrella has the front gate covered, otherwise it's too easy for us."

Barry agreed. "They never were really stupid. By the way, have you ever heard of Carah Papailia?"

Danielle nodded. "Yeah, she works in Research. Why do you ask?"

"I met her a little while ago. She seems to have a few screws loose. The woman is a psychopath. Jittery and very suspicious. Reminds me a lot of Wesker back in the mansion. If you see her, don't trust her. Though I don't think you'd trust anyone who carries about four complete sets of surgical equipment and a loaded gun under her coat," he paused as the strangest look crossed Danielle's face, and she wrinkled her nose at the thought. "I think she may be working for Umbrella."

Danielle nodded in agreement. "She is a bit odd, I don't really trust her all that much either. She's been working for Bio-Counter for about a year now."

"Tell me something, you're usually pretty sensible Dani, so what were you doing just sitting in the hallway considering anything could have crept up on you?"

Danielle looked away. "It's between me and her," she answered flatly. 

"Who?"

Danielle looked at him as if it was the stupidest question she had ever been asked. Then she shook her head and began to walk away.

"I can't really tell you, Barry. But you'll find out eventually."

Rachelle ran down the hall as fast as her legs could carry her. She knew her way around well enough to judge that she was probably going to end up hopelessly lost in the halls of the Laboratory, but she felt that she had to find Danielle and make amends. At least then she could go and get out without having to worry about her. That was Rachelle's biggest weakness. She couldn't leave an argument unresolved. 

Stopping to catch her breath, she heard something down the hall. Drawing her gun, she edged along the wall until she came to a corner. She could hear rapid footsteps coming her way. When she thought they were close, she swung around the corner and pointed her gun at the figure.

"Freeze!"

The girl stopped dead in her tracks and gasped in fright, dropping a small handgun on the tiles with a loud clatter. Looking past the end of her gun, Rachelle lowered her weapon. The girl relaxed, and jumped when she realised it was Rachelle.

"Mrs Fidler! I didn't know you were here!"

Rachelle put her gun back in its holster. "Same applies. What the hell are you doing here, Rebecca?"

Rebecca Chambers was one of the most shy and polite people Rachelle had ever met. She had short, light brown hair, and was wearing a blue bandanna, jeans and a white shirt with a denim jacket. Rebecca looked around for a moment.

"Looking for my mom," she said distantly, looking down the halls from where she stood. "Have you seen her? Her name's Susanna Chambers."

"I know her. Last time I saw her, she was on her way across the Main Quad with Annette Birkin. But I don't know where she is now. Sorry Rebecca."

"Don't worry about it," she said, disappointed. Then she began to walk down the hall. "Come on, there's an exit this way."

Rachelle shook her head. "I'm not looking for an exit, I'm trying to find Danielle."

Rebecca thought for a moment. "Danielle? I saw her on the monitor a little while ago."

"Monitor? What monitor?"

Rebecca turned and waved for Rachelle to follow her, walking down the hall. 

"Come on, I'll show you."

Rachelle shrugged and followed her into one of the rooms further down the hall. Inside was a control system, with a great deal of security monitors on one wall. There was also a lot of scattered office equipment lying around. The room was a mess, but the monitors still worked. Rachelle walked up to them and shook her head. 

"I can't see her."

"Then she's not in the compound. These screens, all together, cover the entire Laboratory."

Rachelle whistled. "Wow. That's a Goddamn lot of space to cover. Must be why there are so many bloody monitors."

Rebecca nodded. "Come on, we should go now."

"Yeah, you're right."

They both walked out of the room. As Rachelle closed the door, she heard another door open down the hall. She looked up as Vanessa Clark ran into the corridor. 

"Vanessa!"

Vanessa looked up and shot at them, missing. When she saw that she didn't hit them, she ran off down the hall. Rachelle grabbed Rebecca by the arm. 

"Come on!"

They chased after her, and caught up just as she ran through a metal screen door at the end of the hall. Rachelle and Rebecca followed her through the door and into the pinkish morning light. They found themselves alongside the east wall of the compound. Vanessa was running towards a door at the other end, which led to the closed off area where the main gate was. 

"Vanessa! Stop!"

Just as she reached the door, she turned around and shot at them again. They both caught up, but thought it wise to keep their distance. 

"Stop right there, traitors."

"Traitors? Miss Clark, we're not-"

"Don't lie!" Vanessa's hands were shaking terribly. "You work for them, don't you! It's just so convenient that none of this ever threatened to happen until you all arrived!"

Rachelle shook her head. "Oh God, Vanessa! It was going to happen anyway! Umbrella probably picked this time because it would hit two birds with one stone! They want us dead, they want you dead. It was convenience for them!"

"Lairs! Do you really expect me to believe you?!"

Rebecca hadn't been listening. Her eyes were fixated on the odd vine that was twining its way down the wall towards Vanessa. Neither of the other women had noticed it yet. Rebecca tapped Rachelle's shoulder.

"Rachelle, look at that," she whispered, pointing to the vine. Rachelle backed up when she saw it.

"Oh shit. Vanessa, back away from the wall."

Vanessa backed right up to the door and put one hand on the handle. 

"No! I'm getting out of here now. You can't stop me. Nothing can!"

As she finished speaking, the vine slowly wrapped itself around her waist. Vanessa looked down as it tightened. 

"Wh... what? Get it off me!"

The vine lifted her up, and a huge surging sea of vines appeared over the ridge of the concrete wall, writhing and hissing as it covered the entire top and half of the side. A huge bulb, the head of the creature, rose out of the mass, and loomed over the top of Vanessa, who froze in horror at the sight. The ivy creature lifted her higher, and soon she was level with the top of the wall. Though she tried as hard as she could to squirm out of the iron grip of the monster, it was to no avail. 

Suddenly the bulb opened, and a jet of acid shot out, splattering all over her. She screamed in pain as the acid melted her skin and hair. The acid burned the synthetic fabrics of her dress into her skin. Steam rose up from her body, and her hair turned brittle. Rachelle turned Rebecca's head away from the horror. Suddenly the vine let go, and Vanessa's still burning body came crashing to the ground, now frangible bones splintering and cracking on impact. There was hardly any flesh left on the bones. Rachelle put a hand on Rebecca's shoulder.

"We have to run. It's our only chance."

Rebecca nodded and followed quickly as Rachelle ran off. "Even Vanessa didn't deserve that."

Rachelle nodded as they ran. "I know, Rebecca. No-one should have to die like any of this."

They reached the garden in the middle of the Quad. As they ran along one of the paths, they heard something. Rachelle drew her gun and moved slowly towards the sound. When she saw what it was, she quickly holstered her gun and ran over. Lying on the ground in a pool of blood, was Linda Birkin. She appeared unconscious, but as Rebecca and Rachelle approached her, she opened her eyes and looked up at them.

"I... I'm not going to make it," she whispered.

"Don't talk like that Linda, of course you are. All we have to do is get you to safety."

Linda shook her head. "You can't move me Rachelle, it will just make it worse."

Rachelle looked at the wound that had been inflicted on the scientist. Something with very big claws had sliced her up the side and across her shoulder. The cuts were deep and bleeding profusely, and she had lost a lot of blood. Rachelle realised that Linda was right. There was no way she was going to make it. Rachelle shook her head.

"No... I can't believe this!"

Linda looked up at them. "Listen. My brother is William Birkin. I'm sure you've heard from Annette that he works for Umbrella. When you find Annette, give this to her. I would much rather it had gone to William, but it can't. She needs to know this."

She handed her an envelope. Rachelle nodded and put it in her pocket. Linda coughed and closed her eyes.

"Girls, go to Research. It's safe there. I think that Susanna and Annette are there," she whispered, slipping away. "Good luck."

With these last words, Linda drifted into unconsciousness. Even though she hardly knew her, Rachelle felt tears beginning to well up in her eyes. She had to look away. Rebecca covered her face, trying not to start crying. Rachelle sniffled and stood up, wiping tears from her eyes. She looked down at the letter that Linda had asked her to pass on to her sister-in-law, Annette. 

"Don't worry, Linda, I'll make sure she gets it. I'll even march right into Umbrella's headquarters and demand they bring William back so that he'll get to see this letter."

Rebecca smiled as best she could. "You're a great person, you know. Not many people would be that dedicated."

Rachelle nodded, feeling tears beginning to appear again. "Just don't mention it, okay? It's no real big deal."

"I guess we should go to Research, huh?"

Rachelle began to walk off, when she heard something that almost made her heart jump out of her chest. A low purring broke the silence. Rebecca came up alongside her.

"What is that?" she whispered. Rachelle shook her head and drew her gun.

"Your worst nightmare. Run!"

Rachelle began to run for Research, followed close behind by Rebecca. They ran along the front of the building and Rachelle thought they were home free as they ran through the open gate. But as they passed the guardhouse, there was a crash, and Rachelle heard Rebecca scream. Whirring around, she saw a giant, human-like cat on top of Rebecca, trying to bite at her neck. Rachelle pointed her gun and began to fire at the monster. The cat stopped attacking Rebecca and jumped back, ready to pounce on Rachelle. She continued to fire on the monster, and it snarled, the bullets cracking into it, yet the monster still stood almost uncaring. It advanced slowly towards her. Rebecca rolled onto her stomach and also shot at it. Yet the monster, though weakening to the bullets, continued to approach them, bent forward with its hunched back and werewolf-like posture. 

Suddenly there was the report of another gun, and the black cat disappeared in a burst of sparks, squealing in pain. Rachelle took advantage of its weakness, and ran at the animal, shooting relentlessly. The animal hissed and ran off, looking awkward on four legs. Rachelle ran over to Rebecca and helped her to her feet. Rebecca was shaking a fair bit and was having trouble getting out her thanks. Rachelle hugged her.

"Hey, it's alright, Rebecca."

The sniper appeared alongside them. "You held out well, Rebecca."

They both looked up at Annette. She shifted her grip on the spark gun she was holding.

"It would be advisable to come inside, 'Panther' will be coming back."

She led them into the lobby of the Research building. Rachelle sat Rebecca down in one of the soft chairs in the lobby.

"Th... thank... you," she managed to get out. Rachelle rubbed her arm.

"Don't worry about it. I couldn't just let it kill you."

Rachelle looked up as someone entered the room. Susanna was standing in the doorway that led into the Library. Susanna stood where she was for a moment, before racing over to Rebecca.

"Rebecca! Think goodness you're alright!" she cried, hugging her daughter. "What happened to you? Why aren't you in the Village where I told you to stay?"

Rebecca hugged her back. "I couldn't stay there, mom, otherwise I would've been killed. Cerberus dogs got into the Village. Linda told us to come here because it's the safest place."

"Linda? Where is she, Rebecca?"

Rachelle stood up and put her hand on Susanna's shoulder.

"She... she didn't make it. I'm sorry."

Susanna looked up at her, shocked. "What? What happened?"

"She was fatally wounded by one of those monsters."

Rebecca looked up. "Do you think it was that cat-thing that attacked us before?"

Rachelle nodded. "Probably. I don't think it could have been the plant, because it didn't have claws."

"You mean the 'Panther' and the 'Creeper'. They're two of the B.O.W.s released into the compound by Umbrella," Annette explained. "We know about one called 'Tyrannos'. There's a fourth one, called 'Thorax'. But we don't know what or where it is. The Panther is very dangerous because it's so fast."

Susanna had been pretty quiet up until now. She turned to Rachelle.

"Wasn't Danielle with you?"

Rachelle closed her eyes and looked away. "Was, is the operative word."

"She's not... dead, is she?" Annette asked slowly. Rachelle looked at her and shrugged. 

"I don't know. Honestly. We had a fight and went in separate directions. I went back in to find her, but found Rebecca instead. I have no idea where Dani is."

"We need her to get Smokey out of the keeping room. She's the only one with key card access to that particular room who is still assumed to be alive."

Just as she finished speaking, there was a beeping sound from behind the reception desk. Susanna ran over and pushed the intercom.

"Research. Dr Chambers speaking."

There was a fair amount of background noise before there was any answer.

"This is Barry. We're in Higher Machinery. How long will it take you to get down here?"

"About fifteen or so minutes if we take the 5th service tunnel from here and come in via Lower Machinery. What's the problem?"

"We're being tailed by Hunters."

Annette clicked her fingers to get Susanna's attention. She looked over.

"What's this about 'we'?" she asked.

"Barry, who are you with?"

There was a moment of silence before he answered. "Let me guess. Either Annette or Rachelle's there. Tell them that Dani's alright... in a certain respect. She was attacked by a Cerberus. She'll be fine, but she's a bit out of commission for now. We'll take that service tunnel then. We're at the junction."

"You need Danielle to use her key card."

There was a pause. Barry came back. "Yeah, she's fine to do that. She's not like, lights out or anything, just a little on the stamina side."

Annette crossed her arms and looked at Rachelle. "Do you feel better now?"

"What? Why?"

"Well, now that you know Danielle's pretty much alright, you won't feel bad about leaving her behind."

"Don't push it Annette, you're hanging by a thread of trust with me as it is, don't be sharp with me. What makes you think I felt bad about leaving her in the first place?"

Susanna looked up. "Alright, break it up. Rachelle, you're feeling better. Annette, you're shutting up."

_Time is running short and tempers are running high,_

_if__ they can't work together they'll never survive!_

_Trapped in Bio-Counter, will they escape before they too are defeated?_

_Next in Chapter 17: The Rout of the Cavalry._


End file.
